


Take Me Back

by MysteriaWinds



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Haruno Sakura is So Done, Haruno Sakura-centric, Konohagakure | Hidden Leaf Village, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-14
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:55:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 27,997
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28078812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MysteriaWinds/pseuds/MysteriaWinds
Summary: It was never Sakura's, nor anyone's intention for her to be falsely accused, losing her family and her friends in less than one day. To start a new future, and to create some time for herself, she moves after being constantly bullied. Of course, she has to come back one day, right? How will her old friends treat her, will her parents ever be back to explain?
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuuga Hinata/Uzumaki Naruto, Konan/Yahiko (Naruto), Nara Shikamaru/Temari, Sai/Yamanaka Ino
Kudos: 32





	1. Chapter 1

Sakura Haruno

"Ino-pig!" I screeched, pulling her hair as she flicked my forehead. 

"Billboard Brow!" Ino shot back, sticking her tongue out and pulling on the skin of her eye.

Our friends surrounding us rolled their eyes as Naruto leaped on top of us. 

"Dogpile!" Kiba yelled, hopping on top of Naruto. I screamed, feeling the weight of the two grinning goofballs. The tick mark on Neji's face grew as Choji and Lee joined in. 

"Would you dimwits quit it?!" Tenten glared murderously, upset over the fact that Neji was annoyed. My head snapped towards Ino, who was right next to me. We winked at each other, knowing something was happening.

Smiling to myself, I sat up and ruffled my hair. "Oh, shizzlesticks!" Naruto shivered, feeling the horrible aura staring into his soul. "K-kaa-chan!" Naruto stuttered, rushing towards her. 

As the duo walked off, everyone could hear Kushina scolding Naruto, pulling him by the ear. We all giggled before paling. 

"RUNNN!!!" Everyone shouted, included Sasuke. We all dashed towards our home, hoping that we wouldn't be toasted by our parents as well.

><><

I panted as I opened the front gates. I frowned, noticing that the place was too quiet. 

It's so... empty.. Inner commented as I slowly walked into the house. I chewed on my lip, seeing total darkness in the kitchen. 

As I flicked the lights on, I immediately noticed almost everything gone. There was a small note on the table, signed by my parents. I picked it up, scanning through it.

Anger blinded my eyes as I crumpled the sticky note in my hand.

Sakura,

Your father and I have decided to leave for the States. Seeing as you're 6 years old, you can take care of yourself just as fine as if we were with you. Of course, Mallory will being coming in daily as per usual, and will stay for as long as you need her. Stay safe, honey.

-Mom

I chucked the note into the air, growling. How could they leave without telling me? They didn't even give me a proper explanation! My eyes dimmed as I walked to my room. Practically throwing myself onto the only comfort I had, I hugged the pillow closest to me on my chest. 

My sobs racked through the room and soon enough, my grief turned into anger and resentment. I closed all of the windows, shutting every single curtain in the house, locking everything up.

I sat there, mixed emotions whirling through my head. Anger, tiredness, and most of all, sadness. Why would they betray me like that? I thought to myself and slumped into bed.

A loud knock at the door woke me up. I yawned, throwing on a hoodie to cover parts of my pajamas before opening the door. 

"Sakura-san! Did you just wake up? It's 11 in the morning!" My ears perked up as I heard her. 

"Mallory... my parents.." I couldn't hold my tears back, thinking of what had happened. Mallory took me in her arms, running her fingers through my bed hair. She whispered softly into my ears to help soothe me.

Once I had composed myself again, I had to get some answers. 

"How long had this been going on? What exactly did they tell you?" I asked as Mallory brought over a pot of tea. She sighed, knowing that I'd ask someday. 

"I'm not supposed to tell you until you're 10, Sakura-san." Hearing her reply, my nostrils flared. 

"When I'm 10?! That's in 4 freaking years! I'm their daughter, and yet they didn't even want to tell me?" I went on a rampage, ranting, and even ended up throwing a pillow across the room. Mallory hesitated. 

"Sakura-san.. because of my respect for you, I shall tell you." I sat up straight, awaiting her answer.

What she did instead caught me off guard. She had walked into.. my room? I followed her, unsure of what was happening. Mallory looked deep in thought before a light bulb lit on top of her head. 

She grabbed my favorite costume from when I was a baby. Despite my love for it, I hated the memories now, since my parents had left. 

"They knew you would never touch this again until you had to clean out your closet. They hid a letter in there." She explained, pulling out a wad of paper.

I carefully unfolded the paper. No. Way. 

"That's it!" I exclaimed. "What does it say?" Mallory questioned, moving towards me. 

"They left because of their business?!?!" Mallory gawked, as I ripped apart the little tutu costume. They really had the nerve to leave me alone in Japan, with my maid, because they wanted to expand their business without me in their way? 

I screamed at the thought of it, clearly angry.

Suddenly, a ring at the front door interrupted my anger fest. I controlled my breathing, trying my hardest to calm down. I walked down the stairs, opening the door. It was the entire gang. Did they know? 

"You guys! Thank you for-" I was cut off by Ino.

"You stupid cow? Did you really bully your parents? I mean, heck, they moved out of the country because of you!!" She said, throwing her hands up in the air. I gasped. 

"What? Ino! Why would I-" I was cut off again.

"Sakura-chan.. I didn't think that you out of all people would have done that." Naruto glared, fists clenching beside him. 

"But Naruto! I didn't-" I was cut off, again. They were really testing my patience.

"Our parents told us. Don't even bother talking to us again." Sasuke said, coldly. The others turned around, walking away, leaving me on the doorstep, tears welling up. 

Hinata looked back at me. My hopes raised, I needed someone to believe me! However, she instead slapped me across the face before catching up with the others, who high-fived her.

At that moment, I knew everything was gone. My friends, my parents, and my happiness. My emotions had automatically shut down, turning me into a robot. 

I slammed the door shut, walking over to Mallory. She rushed towards me, knowing something was wrong. 

"You may come and go as you wish, but do NOT talk to me." I told her shortly, pushing her out the door.

I finally broke down. There. I was betrayed by everyone. Are they happy now? I thought, leaning my head against the door. Tears streamed down my face as I sniffled. 

You have school tomorrow, ya know? Inner popped out, scaring the living crap out of me. I instantly ceased my sobs, setting an alarm for early morning.

Ring!

Ring!

Ring!

Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring! RING! RING! RING!

Slamming my fingers on my alarm clock, I got ready. Putting on my school uniform, I rolled my eyes. We were in first grade, yet we had a school uniform. 

I grabbed an apple and set off for school. Deciding to ride my bike, I hung my backpack on the hooks of the bike. Feeling the brisk air of Autumn rush through my hair relaxed me. 

Just a few minutes later, I made it to the school. I locked up my bike onto the bike holders. I had gotten rid of Ino's red hair ribbon that was gifted to me, knowing it would make her hate me more. Instead, I pinned up my bangs with some bobby pins.

In Konoha Elementary, we had the same sensei for all 6 years, only receiving a new one in middle school and then highschool. And so, I knew who my classmates were. 

It was all of my ex-friends and their fanboys and fangirls. I felt empty inside, knowing that nobody would ever talk to me.

Iruka-sensei nodded his head towards me, motioning for me to pick a seat. Seeing as an entire column was taken up by the gang, and the column next to theirs was the fans, I sat in the very last column in the corner. 

Cringing, I noticed the obvious looks of distaste on everyone's faces. I pursed my lips, ignoring it. I discreetly shoved my Air Pods into my ears, blasting music. I sighed in the comfort of the Kpop. I silently hummed along, doing small motions of the dance whenever I could.

We didn't do much in class, since everyone already knew each other. We just reviewed the rules and had a beginning of year quiz. I, of course, finished first. 

As I walked to the front to turn in my thick packet of work, I glanced at my ex-friends. They were all passing notes, laughing at certain times.

Emotions off!!! Inner yelled in my head, knowing I was about to get emotional. 

Instantly, I had a resting bish face. Once everyone finished, we all had free time until the bell rang for lunch. Hearing our signal, we all walked to the cafeteria. 

Luckily, we didn't have to sit by class, and got to choose where we sat. I paid for my carton of milk and walked to the school garden. I sat down on the bench, relishing in the peace.

Occasionally taking sips of my milk, I switched the song. Gashina by Sunmi started playing and a smile graced my features. I knew the dance to the entire song, so I just marked out the entire choreography, only actually doing the chorus. 

Once a few more songs had passed, I finished my mini-dancing session and returned to the classroom. I was the first one back, since we basically had an hour to eat lunch and do whatever we wanted.

I pulled out my i-Phone 7 and started playing Sudoku. Just 15 minutes in, I was frustrated. I wasn't getting anywhere!! So instead, I switched over to Youtube and watched a few music videos. 

I had always wanted to become a singer, but my parents had told me that no matter what, I had to take over their precious company. 

I had complained and complained, but in the end, accepted my fate. However, now that my parents were gone, I was free. I was never going back. I can write my own future now. 

And I will, I thought determinedly. Cha! We can do it! Inner added as I smirked. The bell rang, signalling the 5 minute time limit to get back into the classroom.

Slowly, everyone filed in, Iruka-sensei coming in last. Since everyone had finished their quizzes, there was nothing to do. After learning that all the 1st graders had finished their quizzes early, the Principle, Anko, had released them all early. 

The entire class cheered as I let out a small smile, packing up my pencils. I walked out of the school building, hands in the pockets of my skirt. I went to unlock my bike from the rack when I noticed a note.

Glad to see that you're finally staying away from my Sasuke-kun and his friends. And it better stay that way, bitch. -Karin

I rolled my eyes looking at the childish note. I tossed it aside and rode home. In the process, I biked past them. Why are they always around us even when we don't want to see them? Inner cursed them out, muttering beneath her breath. 

That's where you're wrong, Inner. I do want to see them, I thought. Sighing, I put my cold front back on and continued home. I scoffed at that thought. It's not a home. It's a house. Filled with disgusting memories.


	2. Chapter 2

It's been 4 years since that day.. the day I lost everything. I guess you could consider me an Uchiha now, silent and cold. However, deep down, I knew that it still hurt. 

I had tried my hardest to move on, yet there was still a certain part of me that didn't want to give up. I sighed, shutting my laptop. 

That was enough school work for today. I still had one more assignment for math, but I could easily do it in homeroom the next day.

I decided to go on a walk. Changing into a tank top and black sweats, I grabbed my earbuds and phone and headed out. Listening to Blackpink's new song, Pretty Savage, I began jogging. 

I was just 15 minutes in when I realized that I should have brought a water bottle. Shaking my head, I continued to the park, where there were plenty of water fountains. 

After clearing my thirst of water, I collapsed onto a bench. Gasping for air, I wiped away the sweat on my forehead.

Suddenly, I heard a giggle. I ignored it, thinking it was nothing. All of a sudden, a rock hit the back of my head and a bundle of laughter rushed out from the kids behind me. 

I turned in the seat of my bench, prepared to glare at whoever did it. Instead, my eyes widened. It was.. Karin, the leader of the Sasuke fangirl club along with 2 of her minions.

"So, pinky bitch. What're you doing here, all alone? Why aren't you with your- OH WAIT, THAT'S RIGHT! You don't have friends!" She sneered at me, reaching into her pocket. 

"Still as vulgar as always, huh, Karin?" She had began calling me pinky bitch every since we were 6. She snorted at me, pulling out a pair of scissors. 

"You might not want to talk to me like that, seeing as I have to power to go.. chop chop." Smirking, Karin motioned to her minions and they ran towards me, pinning me on the ground.

My eyebrows furrowed as I fought against the two. The girl holding down my arms slapped me. 

"Don't even think about it, forehead!" She said. I groaned, my cheek pulsing. I clenched my jaw, holding back for now. 

"Karin.. what are you doing?!" I seethed before freaking out as she began opening and closing the scissors crazily, walking towards me. 

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you! You'll be much prettier when we're finished though!" She smiled innocently as me although I could feel the evil aura pooling around her.

Panicking, my eyes searched around the park. It was already dinnertime at this point, meaning nobody could save me. Cursing beneath my breath, I glared at her. 

In the end, I sighed in defeat, looking at my long, pink locks on the park ground. Tears welled up in my eyes. I had always cherished my pink hair since I inherited it from my father. And now, my hair only reached my shoulders.

"Aww, look at the poor baby cry." Karin mocked me, as the other two giggled, kicking me in the stomach. And thus began the fight. 

I obviously wouldn't let them beat me up. However, three against one was just too much for me and in the end, I was beaten black and blue. 

"HEY! What're you doing to her?!" I heard someone shout, seeing.. Naruto? Ahem, seeing Naruto run up to Karin. The rest of the ex-gang walked up and defended me too. 

"W-what are you doing here?" I asked, holding my bruised ribs. 

"Oh.. it's just Sakura. Let's go." Ino said coldly, leading them all away. My eyes shut. 

Dang, we really are all alone in this world.. Inner spoke up, referring to what Karin had said. I winced, knowing it was true.

"Karin.. I think what we did is enough." One of the minions, Eiko spoke up. 

Karin whipped her head around, facing the girl. 

"It's either you side with me, or her." Karin pointed at me. Seeing the state of my body, she immediately decided against it. They all smirked in victory. 

"You've been doing good for staying away from my Sasuke-kun! So, I'll leave you be for now!" She praised me, although it seemed the complete opposite from that. 

The way she said 'my Sasuke-kun' sent shivers down my spine, hearing the way she was so possessive. I bit back an insult and watched as the three walked away.

Once they were out of my line of sight, I broke down. Hugging my knees as close to my chest as I could without hurting myself, I shoved my head in between my legs. 

Once 10 minutes had passed, I knew I had to go back home. Dragging my body off the ground, I cringed. CHA! Those bums will pay!!! Inner chanted in my mind, fired up over the thought of getting back at Karin. 

I grinned at Inner's enthusiasm but soon enough, a frown took over my face as I realized I couldn't run and could barely walk, meaning it would be about 2 hours until I got home. By then, it'd be pitch black.

Tilting my face back to look at the sky, I shut my eyes. Maybe staying here overnight to rest is a better idea... No. I had to get home. Actually, I need to get out of here. This.. beating me up and ignoring me thing has gone on for too long. 

We're leaving? Inner asked happily.

I sighed. Yes, leaving. To America. I know that that's where my parents are, but I'm sure that they're in New York, since that's one of the best spots for their business.

Even though it took a while, I managed to get myself home. I hopped, well, not literally since I had a limp.. into the shower. I washed all the blood off my body and washed my hair. 

While drying myself off, I thought of when I should go. 

Well, since today's Thursday, we can go to school for the last time tomorrow as a little goodbye and then leave right after school in the afternoon! 

I mulled it over for a second and agreed. I booked a ticket for tomorrow afternoon at 5pm.

Time Skip

Finally. The last day that I'm in this heck of a hole. I breathed in the fresh air of Konoha Elementary before walking into the building. For the first time in years, a smile graced my face as 

I sat down at my desk, this time, at the front. I decided to give it my all for my final day. I pulled out my science notebook, since we're learning about the water cycle. 

Just a couple of minutes before class started, everyone filed in. Seeing the smile on my face shocked everyone and whispers carried around the room.

My smile faltered for a second as I noticed Neji walking up to me. 

"Oh, so what? You're happy because your parents are coming back?" He snarled at me, his beautiful eyes filled with hatred. 

"Ready to bully them again?" Kiba snapped, crossing his arms. My face contorted in confusion. Instead of responding, since I knew that they wouldn't believe me anyways, I just opened my notebook and began titling the page in advance.

"You two will be in middle school in just 5 months, and yet you don't even understand the concept of sitting in your seats when the bell rings?" Iruka-sensei came up to us, cocking an eyebrow at Kiba and Neji. 

Haughtily, the two boys turned and walked to their respective desks. As Iruka-sensei began teaching, I uhh sorta kinda doze off. I stared outside the window next to me, watching the butterflies swirl around each other.

"Sakura Haruno!" A loud voice interrupted my day-dreaming. I lazily looked over to who called me. 

"Lady Tsunade?" My head struck up, my form fixing itself immediately as I bowed. Rolling her eyes, she grabbed me by my ear. 

"Hope you don't mind, Iruka. I need to have a word with her!" Tsunade gave a large, obviously fake smile. Not having the nerve to argue, Iruka shut the door after Tsunade walked out.

"Auntie.." I started, fidgeting nervously. 

"I'm not even your aunt, kid! Call me your mom from now on! At least I'll always be here for you.." She began ranting, throwing her hands up in the air. 

"Kaa-chan!" I pulled on one of her pigtails, snapping her out of her trance. 

"Oh, right! Anyways, Saki, I noticed you booked an airplane ticket.. mind telling me?" She impatiently rapped her foot against the ground. I rubbed the back of my neck. 

"Well, you already know about me being bullied, but.." I told her the situation and what it had turned into now.

Her look of pity flashed into anger before pulling me in her arms. 

"Well, we're leaving now. You need to pack! You don't even know where you're gonna stay! Can you even speak English?!?" Kaa-chan began freaking out, as I stood there stoically. 

"Of course I do! If I didn't, why would I even suggest going in the first place!"

She sheepishly smiled, dragging me back into the classroom. Her principle-like aura took over and she became serious once again. 

"Listen up, especially you, you perverted little-" She almost cursed Iruka-sensei, who sweat-dropped. All the other kids chuckled seeing the principle of Konoha Highschool do her job. 

"Now then, Sakura Haruno will no longer be here. She's moving to the States." A collective gasp rang across the classroom as I facepalmed. 

"Did you have to say it like that?" I questioned my mothers thought process. Just when I didn't think it could ever get worse, she said, 

"Of course I did! Who do you think I am? *cue the hairflip* Anyways, BYEEEE!!" She cheerfully waved at everyone. My deadpan expression dug into her back as she turned and smiled at me. 

"Let's go, my darling. We gotta start packing!" I sighed, following her out the door.

Settling into the car, Kaa-chan turned to me. 

"Seriously though, Sakura. What're you going to do once you get to the States?" I grinned, instantly knowing the answer. 

"I'm gonna become a singer!" I exclaimed, eyes sparkling. I knew what she would say next. 

"Kaa-chan, I know that I'm only 10, but I turn 11 soon! And, don't you think I'm mature enough to make my own decisions? Think of what I've been through! This is the first time I'll ever be able to do what I want!" I tried talking her into it. 

Seeing Kaa-chan's face change, I knew I got her.

She just ruffled my hair before dropping me off. 

"I know you need some time to yourself while packing, and you have 3 hours to do that since you didn't-" She ranted about me not packing earlier and instead booked the ticket to early. I sweat-dropped, seeing a tick mark on her forehead. 

"Kaa-chan... Don't worry. I won't be bringing much anyway since I'll be buying a lot when I get to California!" I reassured her. And yup, I'm going to California. It seemed to be the best spot for celebrities to flourish, so that's where I'm headed!

I entered the house for the last time. Well, I'm of course going to come back in a few years, just after I.. feel better? I don't know anymore. 

I shoved a few of my clothes into a small suitcase. It was spring in America at the moment, so there'd be tons of cute summer clothes over there. I'd also be going through puberty soon, so I wouldn't bring too many clothes.

Walking into my bathroom, I gathered a bunch of things. I got my toothpaste and toothbrush, a comb for my hair, a small bottle of shampoo and conditioner mixed, my deodorant, and a couple of other things. 

Putting everything in the small pocket on my suitcase, I decided it was ready. 

Grabbing a small backpack out of my closet, I put in a book, my Air Pods and earbuds, I have both just in case I don't want my Air Pods to fall out, some hair ties, a neck pillow, and a hoodie in case I got cold.

Tying my hair into a low bun, I changed. (Outfit shown at the top!) Pulling on my hat, I decided to walk around the large mansion as a little goodbye. 

Mallory had stayed by my side for so long, but 2 years ago, I had let her go. She didn't need my dark mood destroying her happy and sunshine filled one.

Most of the garden was removed from the mansion since nobody would take care of it. Seeing the bare place made me sigh. Although I hated this place, I couldn't help but feel sad. Sitting down on a stone bench, I admired the beautiful architecture. 

Wait! Go into your parents room! Inner bursted. Confused, I didn't question her and went up there. Everything was so neat, yet dusty. It was just as my parents had left the room. However, the one thing I didn't understand was how my best friends had believed that I abused my parents... 

Let's go ask! I checked the time. It was just past 3pm, meaning I had less than an hour. "You couldn't have come up with this idea, I don't know, 4 years earlier?" I asked sarcastically, aloof. I could hear Inner mentally cursing me out as I giggled.

But no, I wouldn't talk to them. Why? They'd have to find out the truth themselves. However, their parents were the ones that told them the lies. 

Everything was so confusing, and at this point, I didn't have the willpower in me to continue. Instead, I sat outside, suitcase and backpack in hand, waiting for Kaa-chan.

Half an hour later, she arrived. Motioning for me to go into the car, I hesitated. 

"I know it's difficult, Saki, but be strong." Kaa-chan slung an arm around my shoulders. I held back tears as I climbed into the white car. 

"You're lucky that the airport is only 30 minutes away, if not, we could've been late!" I scolded her, rolling my eyes. 

"Oh, give me a break! It's not my fault that some brats in school formed a gang and decided to beat the absolute crap out of anyone who came close to their group!"

"Gang?" I questioned, turning to look at her. 

"Yeah, they call themselves the Akatsuki. They're only in 7th grade, yet they're causing quite a bit of trouble.. Hell, they called me out of my highschool just to deal with some middle schoolers!" Shaking her head, Kaa-chan pulled into a parking spot. 

Dragging myself out of the car, I pulled my suitcase with one hand and slung my backpack over my other arm. We checked in and said our final goodbyes.

"Are you ready?" Kaa-chan asked me, pulling me into a bone-crushing hug. 

"Y-yes, mom.. can't.. b-breathe!" I cried out, turning slightly pink. Letting out a gasp, she instantly released me. 

"I am ready though. And if I don't go now, I'll never have the courage to go again!" I chuckled, going into the line. 

"Sakura! I love you, darling! Be safe! Don't forget to call me wHEN YOU LAND!" Her voice got louder and louder as I walk further away. I shot her a peace sign and a thumbs up, scanning myself on the scanner to make sure there weren't any metals on me.

Soon enough, I was boarding the plane. After getting my ticket checked, I sat in my seat, which was the edge seat. Thank goodness, at least I don't have to ask anyone to move so I could go to the bathroom! 

I turned to my right, noticing three empty seats. Well, let's just hope it isn't anyone creepy.. Inner said, while I lowkey freaked out about the thought.


	3. Chapter 3

Sasuke Uchiha - (Flashback; 4 Years Ago)

Kaa-chan walked into my room, holding a plate of sliced apples. 

"Honey, eat up. There's something your father and I need to tell you." Speaking so seriously, I knew that it was no time to joke around. 

Quickly eating 5 slices of apples, I held her hand in one and held my dino plushie in the other.

Walking to the living/family meeting room, we could hear my father's voice booming. "Mikoto! Itachi!" He didn't say my name, which slightly disappointed me. 

However, it must be because he knew I was coming with mom. The three of us entered the room at the same time. Itachi and I sat down on one couch, confused as ever. 

Mother and father sat on the loveseat couch, giving each other a kiss on the cheek each.

Internally cringing at their public display of affection, I straightened. 

"What is it, mother, father?" Itachi-nii spoke up. His voice was getting deeper and deeper due to puberty. 

My mother had brought it up multiple times, squealing almost every time he spoke, since he was a man of little words.

"Sasuke.. this is about Sakura Haruno." Father's words caught my attention immediately, as my head perked up. We all listened carefully as father explained. 

"It is said, that Sakura Haruno abused her parents, Mebuki Haruno, and Kizashi Haruno. They haven't clarified it yet. However, they have brought up the fact that their daughter is a demon child, and must be avoided at all costs. It seems that due to their daughter's evilness, they've moved away to the States to get away from her."

Hearing what father had to say about Sakura shocked me to the core. I never thought that the kind and innocent Sakura I knew could turn into that! 

My face turned to stone. Inside, I could feel myself turning into father. A stoic man who barely showed emotion.

After thinking upon what father had said, my anger slowly grew for Sakura. I could never imagine doing such things to my parents, and worst of all, making them move just to get away from me. 

I hugged my dino plush closer to my chest and walked to the door, where I could hear a couple of shouts from two certain blondes.

Opening the door, the scene made me question my actions of being friends with them. Ino was pulling on Naruto's spiky hair as Naruto yanked on Ino's pigtail. 

The others just stood in silence and we all gawked at the two. Well, I just stood there as the others gawked idiotically.

Seeing as nothing was happening, the two idiots straightened themselves out, grinning at us with wild hair. Rolling my eyes, we sat in the park. 

"D-did you..?" Hinata trailed off, asking us a question. 

"Yeah. That cunning little b-word that Kaa-chan won't let me say!" Naruto exclaimed, with Shikamaru face-palming at his choice of words.

Third Person

"The thing is, it doesn't make sense. If Sakura abused her parents like that, why didn't she treat us that way? She already had those two wrapped around her finger, what more than a couple of kids? She could easily take us if she wanted to..." Shikamaru spoke his thoughts, completely bewildered by the situation.

Choji, who at the moment, looked like he didn't care much about what was happening, spoke up. 

"Maybe she wanted us to be on her side if anyone ever found out!" After speaking, he continued shoving potato chips into his mouth, grinning as the flavors wrapped around his mouth.

Suddenly, Kiba spoke up. "We should confront her." 

There was a pregnant silence in the air. Everyone agreed, but didn't know what to say. 

"But, what're we gonna ask her when we do confront her?" Naruto questioned with his hand in the air. 

"Let's just have a code! Why? So only we will know and nobody else. We should also make our moves based on her appearance and reactions. Why? Because there's so many things the body can tell you." Shino pushed his sunglasses up against the bridge of his nose as everyone's jaw dropped.

"Alrighty then! Let's get going ya'll! We'll talk about that code thingy-ma-jigger on the way there!" Ino's fist pushed into the air as fire burned in her eyes. 

She wanted to see whether her best friend was truly a monster or not.

Standing in front of the door, the six year old's began whispering furiously. 

"Who's gonna ring the bell?" 

"You!" 

"What, I'm not doing it!!" 

"Just do ittttt!" 

Rolling his eyes at the immature 'idiots', Sasuke pressed his small pointer finger against the fancy doorbell.

Silently waiting, everyone started pushing each other to the front, and as the door opened, Ino marched up, pushing the others out of her way. Seeing the way Sakura's face looked made her falter. 

Thinking about the code they came up with, she cut Sakura off. 

"You stupid cow?" Seeing the way her insult came out more of a question, Ino hardened. 

"Did you really bully your parents? I mean, heck, they moved out of the country because of you!!" The feisty blonde threw her hands up.

Oblivious to Sakura's sentence coming out, Naruto cut in, needing to get his words off of his chest. 

"Sakura-chan.. I didn't think that you out of all people would have done that." Fists clenched by his side, Naruto looked to the side, glaring at a tree. 

At this point, Sakura was starting to get exasperated, and it showed in the way she said it.

Listening to how annoyed she was, Sasuke knew it was time to end it. It hurt, cutting ties with the only girl he had ever been close to, but seeing what had happened, he had to abide by the rules. 

"Our parents told us. Don't even bother talking to us again."

The poor ravenette didn't even want to look at the girl's reaction, so he turned and left right there. Seeing the other follow him, he didn't relax. 

Suddenly, a slap rang across the area. Spinning around, Hinata stood there, glaring at Sakura. Tenten smirked, giving Hinata a high-five. 

"You go, girl!" Hearing the praise being handed to her, the praise she never received from her father, Hinata felt happy.

Hearing the door slam shut behind them only made their smugness grow. 

"Hah! So it was true! Well, at least she won't be able to control anyone else!" Ino crossed her arms. It was evident that a small part of her still cared for Sakura, but soon enough, it would fade into hatred.

4 Years Later... (A/N: I know that this is a huge time skip from where we just were. However, I need to get the story moving one way or another. Anyways, back to the story!!)

Settling into their usual desks, the group of ten year old's glared at the pinkette in the corner. What made their mood worse, however, was the fans. Seriously, they were only in fifth grade, yet all they could talk about was looks. 

The sad part was that Ino was one of them. Infatuated by Sasuke's new coldness, she officially joined the fangirls when she turned 7. The only difference was that Ino was still a part of the group, since they had signed an oath where their friendship came first.

It wasn't even an hour into class when Sakura was dragged out by the holy goddess, Tsunade. Tenten's blood boiled, seeing the little monster be treated like an angel. 

However, she had to keep her anger clear out of her mind to look cool in front of Neji. Almost everyone knew about their love for each other, yet the two idiots didn't know it themselves.

Watching as the duo walked back into the classroom, everyone out on their good child mask, looking at the she-devil yet respected goddess, Tsunade. Seeing as she was in principle mode, the children all knew that they had to tiptoe around her. 

"Listen up, especially you, you perverted little-" She almost cursed Iruka-sensei, who sweat-dropped. All the other kids chuckled seeing the principle of Konoha Highschool do her job.

"Now then, Sakura Haruno will no longer be here. She's moving to the States." A collective gasp rang across the classroom as Sakura facepalmed. 

"Did you have to say it like that?" 

Just when it couldn't get any funnier, she said, "Of course I did! Who do you think I am? *cue the hairflip* Anyways, BYEEEE!!" Tsunade cheerfully waved at everyone. 

Sakura's deadpan expression dug into her back as she turned and smiled at her. 

"Let's go, my darling. We gotta start packing!" Sighing at the woman's antics, Sakura followed her out the door.

As soon as the bell rang, the group started talking about Sakura. 

"Y-you don't think that S-Sakura w-will..." Hinata started, looking down. 

"GAH! I JUST KNEW THAT STUPID GIRL WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO KEEP HER HANDS OFF OF THEM!!" Ino shouted, tightening her ponytail. 

Patting her on the shoulder, Choji spoke up, 

"Let's go watch what she's doing while she's packing. Maybe we can figure something out." They all set off to the Uchiha Manor, deciding on a sleepover. To Sasuke's displeasure, he had to agree, knowing Mikoto would insist no matter how he argued.

Looking out the raven's window and across the street, they saw Sakura in her room. All she did was walk around, grabbing things now and then, packing it into her luggage. 

All of a sudden, the little girl disappeared. Freaking out over what she would do, Kiba shoved everyone out of the way, peering out the window. 

Smushing his face against the window next to him, Naruto stared hard.

A gasp came from the two boy's as they moved aside, letting the other's see. There, Sakura stood, in her parents room. Looking at her phone, Sakura's hand came up onto her chin as she thought furiously. 

But after shaking her head, Sakura vanished once again, this time, appearing in her garden. Once the little girl walked around for a bit, she sat down on her, no, their favorite bench.

Just watching Sakura sit there made them bored, so they decided to play a game of Twister. 40 minutes had passed. By then, Sakura had already left, going to who knows where in America. 

They had no purpose in being obsessed with Sakura's story anymore, and started a new game of Twister.

Slowly, but surely, the group forgot about Sakura. Only when opening up their childhood memories would they ever remember Sakura. Leaving the photo albums of them all grouped together untouched, it sat in all of their living rooms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4 will be the other part to Chapter 2, as I wanted to put in the gang's perspective before I kept moving on with Sakura's life :) Hope you guys enjoyed!!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know!! I was gone for almost half a month!! I have a few chapters prewritten, though, so I will be uploading them right after this!!

A/N: The other half of Chapter 2!

"Sakura?" My head whirled around and I broke out into a smile.

"Gaara, Temari, Kankuro!" I welcomed them, as they all sat next to me. Temari next to me, Gaara on her right, and Kankuro on the edge opposite to me.

The intercom blared as the start of the flight began.

I had learned that the Suna Siblings were going to America because their father wanted them to get more experience in the world, and to get away from the troubles in Sunagakure. Temari and I engaged in a long conversation as Gaara silently listened.

Meanwhile, Kankuro had instantly fallen asleep, his snores radiating throughout our airplane room. Seeing the nasty glares being sent to him, Temari and I giggled.

I pulled out my phone, taking a selfie. Posting it on Instagram, I captioned it;

'Starting anew with my loves <3', tagging all 3 of the siblings. 

Putting on a movie, I noticed that Temari and Gaara had went to sleep as well, leaving me awake. I plugged my earbuds in and watched.

A nap later, I woke up to one of the plane attendees tapping me on the shoulder. Giving me a variety of choices, I decided to settle for the rice and orange chicken, which is what Temari had picked.

Watching as the flight lady woke up Kankuro, he snorted in her face, choosing a steak and rice meal. Gaara had gotten the same. 

We all munched on our food, before all getting the pee-strike. The four of us stood up at the same time, filing into a line to the bathroom. We all bursted into laughter noticing how we all had to go.

After relieving ourselves, Kankuro had collapsed into his chair, picking out a movie. Seeing his choice made me crack up. He chose a Barbie princess movie and sat back, giggling like a fangirl.

Rolling his eyes at Kankuro's antics, Gaara picked out a horror movie.

Temari and I had decided to take another nap, since that passed time the most. I chose my Korean Ballads playlists and blasted it as I shut my eyes. 

"Sakura! You slept for eight and half hours! We're literally landing in like... TEN MINUTES!!" Temari violently shook me awake.

I grimaced, rubbing my eyes. Waving her off, I packed up my belongings. I noticed everyone was already ready to leave, leaving me the only sleepy person on the plane.

"You uhh, didn't want to wake me earlier?" I sarcastically asked Temari, shooting a glare at her before smiling.

"Nah, you looked too cute while sleeping. I couldn't wake you up!" She answered, grinning.

I sighed standing up, "Imma use the bathroom one more time before we go." 

As soon as I got back to my seat, it was time to go. Grabbing my backpack, the four of us walked out. We got to the luggage carry out and grabbed our suitcases.

"So, Saku, you ready to start your music career?" Kankuro winked at me. I had told them about my plans in America since they told me theirs.

"Yeah.. ready as I'll ever be." I replied, throwing his hand off of my shoulder. 

We walked out of the airport in a row, our backs facing the airport. Flagging down a taxi, we decided to all stick together until I got my music debut, where I would have to live separately to avoid rumors and such.

Lucky for me, the siblings' father had bought an apartment for them, which had an extra room. I gasped, rushing to grab my phone. Shooting a text over to Kaa-chan, I told her that everything was fine and that I'd be staying with the Suna Siblings.

Setting my phone back into my pocket, I turned to the everyone else. "Let's start speaking English from now on!" I told them. Agreeing with me, they told the taxi man where to go. 

It was a long 45 minute ride, but seeing the apartment, it was totally worth it. It was almost next to the beach, and really close to the middle school that we'd be going to! Filing into the apartment, our jaws dropped.

"Holy.. are you guys even sure this is an apartment! It looks more like a house to me!" In total, there were 5 bedrooms and 6 bathrooms, a kitchen, and a living room.

"Looks like father got carried away. Don't know why he bought 5 rooms, but I'll take it!" Kankuro shouted, going into the master room.

"Oldest gets dibs!" He cried out, yeeting himself onto the bed.

The remaining three of us rolled our eyes. Gaara took the room across Kankuro's as Temari and I walked to the other side of the apartment.

"Look Saku, there's another master room! Do you want it?" Temari asked, shoving me into the room. I rejected her,

"No, once I get signed into a music company, I'll be moving out anyways. You take it!" I left her in her new room before taking a decent sized room, leaving the smallest one untouched.

After we all unpacked our belongings, we sighed, relaxing onto the couch in the living room. Making small talk, Kankura ended up flicking through channels on the TV. We spent quite a few hours just watching the news, catching up to what was going on in the States.

After discussing Obama, the US' first black president, it was time for dinner. Well, it was only 4 in the afternoon, but our stomachs told us it was time to eat.

Kankuro's face twisted as he moaned. "Don't worry, stummy! I'll feed you, just you wait!"

As per usual, Gaara's eyes were once again rolling into the back of his head as he facepalmed. I giggled at the boys' interaction, linking my elbow with Temari's as we walked to the closest restaurant, Olive Garden.

The four of us had never tried Italian food before, nonetheless pasta. Seeing the buttery breadsticks being passed out to us, I couldn't help but reach out and grab 2 of the 6.

Completely ignoring the salad that was put on my plate by Temari, who scolded me to eat something healthy, I moaned in ecstasy as the flavors rushed through my body. 

"These are so freaking good!" I said, doing a happy jig in my seat.

Kankuro, raising an eyebrow at me, took a small bite. Instantly, he joined me and together, we danced in the paradise that Lee and Gai-sensei always spoke about.

Temari and Gaara sat, peacefully chewing their salads, questioning our existence. 

"Aww Panda-bear, Temari, have a little fun!" I cheered, grinning as wide as I could.

The duo smirked at the food being placed in front of them. It was their time to join Kankuro and I in paradise. Stars took over my eyes as I slurped up a few creamy noodles.

"I know Ichiraku's is the best in Japan, but Olive Garden just takes the cake!" Temari exclaimed, shoving more and more into her mouth.

Even Gaara, the more stuck-up and cold person joined in on our gushing about the place. Once we finished, we patted our bloated stomachs. 

"Maybe it was a bad idea to eat here.." I groaned, clutching my stomach, attempting to walk faster. The faster we went, the quicker we could fall into our food coma. 

Kankura desperately scratched his stomach. "Don't worry, stummy! I'll relieve you soon enough! Just you wait!" 

Temari giggled, only to moan in the pain of eating too much.

"Deja vu, much?" Gaara questioned. He ended up being the first to get back to the apartment, the rest of us trudging behind him, one by one.

"To.. celebrate, our first night here!" Kankuro began, but ended up running to the bathroom. The remaining three of us wrinkled our noses, knowing exactly what was happening.

5 minutes later, out came Kankuro.

"As I was saying, to celebrate our first night here, SLEEPOVER!!" He thrusted his fists into the air, cheering, running around like a lunatic.

I sweatdropped, going to my room. I quickly changed into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Grabbing a pillow and a fluffy blanket, I dropped both onto the ground in front of the couch, where Kankuro was already laying, head propped onto one hand, the TV remote in the other.

Temari sat in the large bean bag chair. Her hair was no longer in her usual 4 pigtails, so her curly hair poofed out, framing her face in a cute way.

Gaara, on the other hand, removed his eyeliner. (A/N: Remember, Shukaku isn't a part of this Modern story... maybe hehe ;)

Kankuro took one look a Gaara before complaining that eyeliner or not, Gaara was still too good looking. 

"As the oldest.." Continuing his rant, he walked to the kitchen, microwaving a bag of popcorn.

Gaara smirked, stealing Kankuro's spot on the couch, yeeting his blanket and pillow to the ground. Temari and I laughed uncontrollably, seeing Kankuro's tick mark.

After carefully throwing Gaara off the couch, Kankuro triumphantly retrieved his 'bed' back.

Grumbling, Gaara set up his sleeping bag next to me, facing the TV.

Bursting out with laughter, I snuggled into my pillow, watching Frozen with the group. And, of course, we all just had to sing Let It Go. I mean, who could resist?

Singing the final line, we all turned around in sync, smirking at the couch behind us.

"Hn," Gaara muttered, walking back to his sleeping bag. "You are embarrassing." He said, referring to as three.

Temari snorted, "Says the one who was doing hair flips with that short hair of yours!" 

Snickering, she gave Kankuro and I a high-five.

Once we finished the movie in peace, we just laid there, slowly drifting to sleep. The siblings had already knocked out while I was wide awake. 

It felt like forever since I thought about Konoha, and what had happened. Even though I had only left one day ago, I felt something missing inside of me.

That piece that nothing else could fill, but my best friends. I sighed, rolling over. I shouldn't be thinking like this when Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara brought me in...

I couldn't help it though. I miss them.. Inner trailed off dejectedly. Looking up at the ceiling fan, I nodded in agreement. I miss them.

It was the loud squeal that woke me up. Groaning, I rubbed my eyes. 

"Kankuro, what the hell are you doing?" Temari asked, annoyed.

Turning to the couch, I saw Kankuro sprawled like a star, wriggling and dancing about. I was about to slap him because he was making too much noise, but then I realized. He was sleep talking.

And evil grin grew as a grabbed my phone that sat next to me. Started to record, I caught the funniest things ever.

"I will only love cats when pigs can fly!"

"What? Just because my clothes have those ears on it does not mean I'm a cat lover!"

"Wait! Is that a CAAAAAAAT!!"

"Oh.. it's kinda cute. It looks like me, ya know, black fur and ears."

"Oh my gosh! It's official! I love cats!"

I cut the recording there, rewatching it. Snorts came in between my laughs as I noticed Kankuro was running away from the 'cat' , pointed at his ears that weren't even on him at the moment, and finally, Kankuro petted the air. Seeing the last bit blew it for me.

Practically screeching with laughter, I accidentally woke everyone up. The annoyance on their faces dissipated into amusement as they looked at Kankuro, who was glaring at.. himself, on the home screen?

Not even questioning it, I ran to my room to get ready for the day. I remembered in Japan that there was a singing show called I'm Gonna Be A Star. After reading about it, I desperately wanted to audition.

I scrolled online to find out how to audition and where the little venue was. However, the show was on hiatus for 3 years. I automatically pinned the official sight on my laptop and grinned.

3 years to get ready...

A/N: To speed things up a bit, I decided to skip to when Sakura is 13 and can finally audition for I'm Gonna Be A Star!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and Happy Late New Year's, my loves!! <3

It's been 3 years since I left.

I was now schooling in my final year of middle school, 8th grade. Named California Middle School, or as students liked to call it, Cal Middle, it was very nice. I knew that I'd miss a few of the teachers, especially Haku-sensei, who was known as the eye candy.

Obviously, I wasn't one of those fangirls. I've had my fair share of fanboys, I didn't want to turn into one.

It was the last day of school, which meant that I had already turned 14. Wait..14?

Rushing to my laptop, I opened the official website for I'm Gonna Be A Star. Squealing loudly, my long, pink hair bounced around me as I jumped. The auditions were now officially open today! I quickly signed up, hearing Kankuro complain about us being late for the last day.

Snickering I walked out the door with them. "Like you'd care whether we were late of not, Kankuro." I responded cooly, knowing fully well that he really didn't.

"We really couldn't be early for our final day?" Temari questioned, holding the straps of her red backpack.

"As long as Kankuro's here, no." Gaara smirked, seeing Kankuro anime fall. 

These past three years, everything has changed so much. My hair finally grew out, the tips of it just dancing around my waist. The siblings and I had decided on a pact. We had a ninja-like headband tied around some part of our body, a leaf insignia carved into the middle of it. 

It reminded me so much of Konoha. My heart ached whenever I thought of it. I was honestly shocked when Gaara brought up putting the leaf on the headbands, since they grew up in Suna. However, they wouldn't listen to my protests, saying my home was theirs.

It was still a bit weird to think of it, but knowing that Gaara could finally be himself around the other three of us made me smile. Even if I was sad to leave Konoha, I at least created better memories because of it.

"-ura we're here!" Temari bonked my head, snapping me out of my daze. 

'Huh? What happened?" I whined, holding my head, my hands softly brushing the part where my headband laid.

"We're here? Ya know, the school? C-A-L Middle?" Kankuro stressed out Cal Middle, pronouncing each letter with an exaggeration.

Rolling my eyes, I slightly shoved him in a joking way, walking to homeroom.

"Let's just go already!" Gaara scolded, dragging Kankuro's kitty ears inside of Orochimaru-sensei's classroom.

Sitting in our self-assigned seats, the 4 corner seats, we argued over what to do during lunch. Since none of us liked eating the school lunch, and nobody woke up early enough to pack all four of us lunches, we opted on skipping lunch and going out to eat after school.

The boys loved playing basketball while Temari and I shared a love for soccer. We usually switched every other day for sports, but today, we couldn't decide, since it was the last day of school.

"How about we ditch?" I suggested, bringing everyone's attention to me. 

Stars immediately popped into Kankuro's eyes as he nodded like a little puppy. Temari grinned and looked at Gaara for approval. Seeing the obvious frustration on the youngest one's face, the two faltered.

"Let's ditch." A genuine smile spread across Gaara's face, one that nobody had seen since the siblings' mother had passed.

Kankuro, being the softer one of the two elders, teared up, looking at his little brother. Temari just smiled back, ruffling his hair. I watched the three interact with each other and fell back, letting them do their own thing.

Seeing Orochimaru-sensei walk in, I payed attention to him, bored out of my mind.

"Ssssso, since it'sss the last day of classss, you have a free day! Leave early if you wish, or ssstay fo regular hourss until school iss over!" Hearing his 'lisp' made me slightly shiver. I'd never get used to it.

"Well, looks like we don't have to ditch!" Kankuro slung his backpack onto his back, his hands reaching behind his head, tightening the headband. 

Temari instantly held her headband, which was around her neck. Noticing the theme, I touched the headband on top of my head, remembering Ino's red ribbon. Gaara reached towards his arm, where his headband was, tied tightly against his skin. (A/N: You guys!!! Gaara doesn't wear his headband in the actual series lolol so I just had to make something up!!)

Practically waltzing out of the school, Temari and I just had to take our 'last day of middle school' photos.

Posing cutely, I snapped a few pictures of myself using the timer. In the end, the gwe managed to drag the guys in just in time. Hearing the photo shutter, I spun around. Temari had taken a picture of me.

Wolf whistling, Kankuro looked at the photo.

"Sakura! You gotta post this, too!" Temari shoved the picture into my face. I could feel my face warm up. I was running my hands through my hair, while my lips were slightly parted.

"Temari! It's not like my close friends follow me!! My account is public, for goodness sake!" I half shouted, half whispered. It was true. Getting all of the '____ requested to follow you!' notifications annoyed the crap out of all us and in the end, we made our accounts public.

"That's the whole point." Temari smirked, grabbing my phone. Adding the new photo of me into the sequence of photos, she handed it back.

Knowing I wouldn't get myself out of this, I studied the picture. Cha! We look good~ Inner shouted, making me smile. It wasn't half bad.

Marking the date as my caption, I pressed post. Setting my phone into the side pocket of my black and white backpink, I walked to Olive Garden.

It had become a tradition for us to eat at Olive Garden every last day of school, even though we ate there almost every week. As soon as they came out, we all shoved a breadstick into our mouth, piling salad onto our plates as we chewed. 

Just under an hour later, we walked out, bellies filled to the brim. Sighing in satisfaction, we walked back to the apartment, where we had another tradition. Smirking, I grabbed one of the four karaoke mics.

"Let's do this!!" I yelled, jumping up and down. The siblings grinned widely, snatching the other mics. We all screamed into the mics, hyping ourselves up.

Turning on our traditional song, my smirk grew wider. Singing out of pitch, we broke each others' ears.

"Let it go~

Let it go~

That pErFeCt girl is gone!!" 

Kankuro sang obnoxiously. Temari, Gaara and I usually let Kankuro have the last few lines as a solo. Little did he know, I recorded it everytime. Seeing how nothing had changed from 3 years ago, I sweatdropped.

Another 2 hours of singing had passed, and we all collapsed onto our respective sleeping areas, panting. Kankuro was still on the couch, Temari on her bean bag, Gaara in his sleeping bag, and me in my blanket burrito.

Even if it didn't seem like much, this tradition meant everything to us. It was the day that we all had began warming up to each other, and we just had to continue doing the few things that brought us together.

We began talking about future plans, especially since we were going to highschool. Already knowing that Kankuro's future and dream would be that he wanted to be an artist who carved and created things, I tuned out.

Checking my phone, I noticed that I had gotten 1,000 likes on my most recent post. Sweat-dropping, I looked at the comments. Seeing a few of them made my face twist into a from.

Red.Haired.Beauty_ commented on your post: ugly as ever, pink bitch

It seemed that a bunch of her other minions had commented the same thing, as if they were protesting.

I rolled my eyes, going to my comment settings. I set it so that it would automatically block any comments with the words 'pinky bitch' in it.

Looking up, I noticed that Kankuro was finished talking, and they all turned towards me.

"Well," I started. "I'm Gonna Be A Star auditions opened back up. They start in three months." I explained, noticing the excitement grow in their faces.

"That means you gotta get busy! Do you even know what song you're doing?" Temari asked, sitting up straighter in her chair.

"Yep! I wrote it myself. It's called, How To Be A Heartbreaker." I told them, seeing Temari's smirk match mine.

"Sing it!" Gaara handed me a mic. I gladly accepted. 

"No recording it yet! Nobody can see it!" I ordered, grabbing my phone to sync it up with the speaker system.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWXiSMXpJnk (A/N: Click on the link to listen! This song does not belong to me)

Naturally, my performer instincts kicked in as I strutted, doing exactly what I would be doing at my audition.

Rule number one, is that you gotta have fun~  
But baby when you're done, you gotta be the first to run~  
Rule number two, just don't get attached to~  
Somebody you could lose, so le-let me tell you~

This is how to be a heartbreaker!  
Boys they like a little danger,  
We'll get him falling for a stranger,  
A player, singing I lo-lo-love you!  
How to be a heartbreaker!  
Boys they like the look of danger,  
We'll get him falling for a stranger,  
A player, singing I lo-lo-love you!  
At least I think I do!

Cutting straight into the bridge, I sang the short version of which I would be performing in just three months.

Girls, we do, whatever it will take,  
'Cause girls don't want, we don't want our hearts to break, in two!  
So it's better to be fake, can't risk losing,  
In love again, ba-abe!

This is how to be a heartbreaker!  
Boys they like a little danger,  
We'll get him falling for a stranger,  
A player, singing I lo-lo-love you!  
How to be a heartbreaker!  
Boys they like the look of danger,  
We'll get him falling for a stranger,  
A player, singing I lo-lo-love you!  
At least I think I do~

I ended off the song with a whisper of the last sentence. My mini audience's jaws had dropped.

"Saku..." Temari started, but never finished.

My singer's instinct dissipated as I rubbed the back of my neck.

"How was I?"

"AMAZING!" The three shouted in unison, making my eyes widen in shock.

A notification blaring from my phone interrupted the awkward silence. Clicking on the Instagram notification, my eyes widened. 

ino_ymnka commented on your post: Your forehead isn't that big anymore, forehead.

Seeing the simple comment, I didn't know how to respond. Instantly, a string of likes and follows came in. The gang from 3 years ago.. had followed me.

Unsure of what was happening, I hesitantly followed them back.

Tossing my phone onto the couch, I turned back to the quiet trio.

"Well, congratulations! We all know who the winner of this season will be!" Kankuro declared, patting me on the head.

I scoffed, blushing, "You don't know that yet!"

"Watch it happen." Gaara retorted, laying back in his dark blue sleeping bag. 

"What they said!" Temari added on lazily, already half asleep as soon as her body touched the bean bag.

Smiling, I leaned back onto my pillow. "Thanks, guys." I whispered, closing my eyes.

My eyes widened open, shutting the alarm off. It was September 18th. That day. I nervously fidgeted with my hair before deciding that it looked fine. Getting myself together, I cooked breakfast. 

It had been 3 months since the last day of school, and now the audition day. I took the day off of school. Luckily, the principle of California High was understanding and counted me present anyway.

Thanking Principle Nagato within my head, I ate my eggs.

Temari burst into the kitchen, squealing as she ran to the table.

"It's the day! You're finally auditioning! It's been like... forever!!" She exclaimed, hugging me. 

Chuckling, I waved her over to the pan filled with fried eggs. Grabbing a plate, we went over the plan. It was currently 6 am, and the siblings had to get to school by 7:15. 

As for me, I had to arrive at the audition venue at 8:00 so I could get my makeup done professionally, take an interview that explained the video that I had turned in, and meet some of the other contestants.

We decided that Temari, Gaara, and Kankuro would meet up and stand in the family/friends center at noon, which was when I'd be performing, which meant that they'd leave school early.

Walking through the fancy double doors, I gasped in awe at the professional setting. Makeup artists littered the place, rushing back and forth between their supplies and the person they were making up.

One of the artists found their way towards me, moving me towards an empty chair. Sitting me down, she began ranting.

"Your skin is so clear! I don't even need to put on any foundation for concealer! Okay.. well, let's just put on some mascara, eyeliner, eyeshadow, blush, and lip gloss, since that's all you need!

Smiling politely, I thanked her.

Just ten minutes later, her job was finished. Staring at the reflection back at me, I pulled on my bangs that had grown out to just under my chest.

They hadn't grown to my waist like the rest of my hair had, which slightly upsetted me. However, looking at them now, I actually liked it!

Thanking the makeup artist profusely, she kindly swatted me off, telling me to go on my own way.

At 9:00 sharp, I entered an interview room, which had 2 couches and a fake makeup set behind me. I quickly ran through my lines and performed it.

And once I had finished, it began the long process of waiting. Nervously, I sat in the corner, making sure I had memorized my original song.

"If you're running through what you're going to do, there's no point. The key is to just not have stage fright." One of the contestants sat beside me, holding a piece of origami.

"The name's Sakura. Nice to meet you." I reached my hand out. The blue-purple haired beauty smiled, shaking my hand.

"Konan. It's your time to perform. Good luck." She said shortly, leaving me there.

I walked through the large and dark corridors, confused. 

"Wasn't I supposed to come out at 12?" I asked one of the producers, who nodded.

"It's currently 12:01 pm. Get up there and have fun. Good luck!" He pushed me up the stairs, motioning for the cameramen to continue recording me.

Stepping up onto the stage, I accepted the microphone being handed to me. Walking up to the X that marked where I would stand, I noticed the trio rush into the family center. They grinned at me, offering a thumbs up.

Looking out at the audience, I was shocked, but tried hiding it.

The lights lit up the slightest bit, signalling that I would be starting.

Once the first chord of the song struck, everyone whispered, confused. It was my original song, so obviously nobody would recognize it. 

The lights fully turned on, revealing me standing in the middle, head down.

The crowd cheered, excited to find out what song it was.


	6. Chapter 6

Tsunade stared longingly at her stash of soju stuffed in the corner of her desk drawer. She gripped her head, shouting for Shizune.

Said woman busted in, ready for business. Clad in her loose, black dress, her black her was combed neatly.

"Tsunade-sama! What is it?"

The fifty-year old woman looked up to the blackette, clearly bored.

"Shizune, I'm taking a walk around the school. Stay here and do the paperwork for me!" Tsunade barked at the poor woman, who hesitantly sat down.

Blatantly ignoring her own school policy, Tsunade shrugged her green over-jacket off her shoulders, exposing her sleeveless shirt that exposed her rather large chest. 

First going to the freshies, the hot-headed blonde met with another just the same. With their long, blonde hair, their feisty attitudes, and their abnormally large chest department, they could easily pass as mother and daughter.

"Yamanaka! Why aren't you in class yet?" The older of the two instantly snapped, narrowing her brows.

"Tsunade-sama, class starts in three minutes.." Ino sweat-dropped, adjusting her grip on her backpack.

"Oh," Tsunade replied sheepishly. "Well, I'm coming with you, then. Teacher?"

"Kakashi-sensei, milady!"

"That perverted bastard.." 

Seeing their holy principal's irk mark, the students knew better and stood out of the muttering woman's way.

Right as the two entered the classroom, the bell rang.

1 minute passed..

Another minute...

5 more minutes....

It was 8:27 when Kakashi had finally decided to join the classroom, sporting his classic eye-smile which made all the females swoon.

Once the grey-haired man finally opened his eyes, he saw a furious blonde, who was tapping her foot repeatedly on the ground.

"Now, now, Lady Tsunade.. Let's stay calm, shall we?" Instantly, his infamous eye crinkle made it's way onto his face as he inched away.

"Never. Again!" Tsunade shouted, scaring the living hell out of everyone, especially Shikamaru, who was asleep.

On her way out, Tsunade shot a glare towards the students' teacher, slamming the door behind her.

Hearing the smash of the door hinges, an awkwardly funny silence stretched across the classroom.

"Hey, hey, hey! I didn't know this school had old grandmas!!" And of course, the blonde knucklehead had to ruin it.

"Shut up, Naruto!" Tenten scolded the poor boy as Sasuke noogied him.

"Dobe."

"NARUTO!! WHAT DID YOU SAY ABOUT ME?!?!?" In a flash, Tsunade was in front of Naruto, sending him a nasty glare.

"Ehehehe.. Granny Tsunade!" Naruto greeted, giving an awkward grin.

A series of facepalms rang across the classroom as everyone stared at the blonde idiot, some with exasperated looks, while some only held love.

"So how come you're back, Tsunade-sama?" Karin took the chance to suck up to her principle, giving her the sweetest smile anyone had ever seen.

Kiba gagged. From Karin's perspective, she thought she looked like an angel sent to Earth. But from everyone else's, she looked like a monster who climbed her way up from Hell and pretended to be a human.

A menacing look appeared on Karin's face for one second as she looked towards Kiba, but resumed batting her eyelashes at Tsunade shortly after.

"Oh, right!" Giving one last look to Naruto and his antics, she walked back to the room.

"So as you know, there's a show called I'm Gonna Be A Star where singers come together and battle it out. Since they had taken a break for three years, they decided to do a mini special this year for their comeback! People from all around the world had gone to California for their auditions, as you've heard."

Tsunade began walking back and forth in the classroom, her serious mode clicked on.

"There's only twelve contestants this year, making it the most special show yet. Again, this show can take place in any country in the world."

Multiple groaned came from the audience, who wanted it to take place in Japan.

"Lucky for us, they decided to choose Japan!

Since we're the most famous education rink, which includes Konoha Elementary, Middle, High, and University, we were chosen to school the contestants who have not yet graduated!"

Applause scattered across the room as everyone animatedly chatted.

"The chosen lady, and her three sibling-like friends have been enrolled in this classroom, specifically requested by the woman herself. Come on in!"

Kakashi Hatake, being the lazy man he was, took on the smallest class available. Knowing almost everyone in his class, he knew it would be a smooth year.

However, hearing this news made him freeze in the corner Tsunade had practically shoved him in.

But, seeing the pink-haired beauty walk in made his whole body come back to life as he grinned.

Despite his reaction, everyone else sported a look of shock and recognition.

"Ohayo, everyone! My name is Sakura Haruno, nice to see you again!" Sakura smiled, politely bowing and waving, making the fanboys gape in awe.

"Temari Sabaku, here! It's an honor to be here again hehe!" Temari stuck her tongue out, flashing a peace sign, making the fanboys drool.

"Kankuro Sabaku. Cool meeting you," Kankuro kept his introduction short, winking at the fangirls, who were paying him no mind, staring at Gaara.

"The name's Gaara Sabaku." The classroom exploded in squeals, leaving Kankuro to sulk in the corner.

"I will steal that goddamn eyeliner one day, just you wait!" The boy threatened, waving his fist weakly in the air.

Gritting her teeth, Temari yanked Kankuro back to the front as the four transfers bowed in unison.

"Well, now that that's settled, I'm gonna head back to my office!" Tsunade waved everyone off as she strutted out.

"Is she gone?" Kakashi whispered, jumping with glee as he got his nods in affirmation.

"Yes! I finally have my job back!" Instantly becoming stoic again, Kakashi looked at his new students.

"You can sit anywhere you want, do what you want, I don't care. You guys are self teaching yourselves this year, I'll only be giving out study guides from other teachers before every test, and that's it."

Walking out the classroom to who-knows-where, Kakashi left. Everyone erupted into conversation, asking their four new classmates questions.

"How long are you guys staying?"  
"Will you be moving back to the States once this is over?"  
"Don't touch my Sasuke-kun!"  
"Or Neji-kun!"  
"Or anyone, for that matter!"  
"Introduce yourself more!"

Sweatdropping at their fellow comrades' fervent questions, Sakura responded one by one.

"We're moving back to Konoha, since it's been way too long. So no, we won't be going back to the States unless it's for vacation. And I'm 14, just like the rest of you!

I like singing, which is why I'm in I'm Gonna Be A Star. For my blind auditions, I wrote my own song, kind of based off of memories. I can also assure you that... we're only in ninth grade, men is the one thing that isn't on my mind."

Sakura reassured all the fangirls, as well as answering the fanboys' questions.

Seemingly satisfied yet annoyed by her response, Karin couldn't help but blurt out.

"Hah, at least you know that you have no chance with Sasuke-kun!"

Her desperate cries were met by four statues, slowly blinking.

"What, you aren't gonna say anything? Pathetic, pinky bitch." Karin snorted, her winner's aura surrounding her.

Cackling with laughter, Kankuro rolled on the ground. Wiping her tears away, Temari smirked. Gaara was also smirking, but stopped with a disgusted look, pulling Kankuro off the ground.

"Why would I want to be with.. ehem, Sasuke-san? I haven't talked to him in years, I don't know how he's like now." Sakura replied coolly, walking to an empty seat in the back, next to Rock Lee, who was always shunned for still liking Sakura.

Flinching at the obvious noun, Sasuke and his friends looked down.

As their smirks grew, the Sand trio surrounded Sakura and her friend.

"Hi, Lee. It's nice to see you again after so long!" Sakura shook hands with Lee, giving him a small smile.

Frowning in jealousy, her fanboys began shuffling over, wanting to shake her hand as well.

"Back off," Gaara's cold tone made the girls giggle as they stared at him.

Cringing in disgust at her little brothers' popularity, Temari slung an arm around said man and pulled him closer to the group of five.

"Uhm.. Sakura-chan! Ya know, nobody really likes me because of the way that I look. And because I still believed in your youthfulness-!!" Lee began explaining quietly, but ended it strong.

Noticing that everyone was still staring at the little group in the corner, Sakura ignored it.

"That's very kind of you, Lee! Thank you so much! And of course I'm youthful!! Watching Kakashi-sensei and Gai-sensei's rivalry videos are everything!" Pumping her fist in the air, stars shone in the pinkette's eyes.

Listening to the actually somewhat normal conversation between the girl of the day and the school's most avoided boy, the students surrounding them gathered, wanting to hear more.

><><

The bell rang, signaling the end of first period, putting a pause in Sakura and Lee's competition.

"We'll just continue this in gym class with Gai-sensei!"

"Hmph! I'll win, don't you worry!"

Flashing a thumbs up at each other, the 'rivals' made sure that the competition would only be for fun and games. In the end, they'd be back to just friends who pumped each other up.

After careful speculation, Sakura was happy to see that she had gym with the sibling trio and Lee. However, other than that, they only had Kakashi-sensei, their Math teacher, together.

A moment was spent pondering upon her other classes as Sakura walked to her next class, Language Arts, with Kurenai-sensei.

Stepping into the classroom for the first time, students immediately took notice of the floral scent that surrounded them. It was soft and just barely there, and yet, it clung to their senses in a hypnotizing way.

Once seeing their sensei, they connected the pieces. Just like the scent in the room, her medium length dress was also kind of like an illusion, which made them study it out of curiosity.

The woman's red ringed eyes didn't help much either, as they pierced through each student passing by into the classroom. Her black hair was let loose in wild waves, her thin lips set in a firm line.

Reading the atmosphere around her, Sakura sat down. She could tell that this class would be one of the only strict ones, where only teaching would take place.

Scanning the people around her, she took note of a few sophomores cluttering into the room. 

Hm, not so smart now, are they? Inner smirked cockily, making Sakura smile back.

That, or her teaching causes chaos and hell.. She responded, excited to find out what her newest sensei would have in store.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Who's updating schedule has turned into nothing? That's right, mine!! I don't really have a set specific schedule anymore since online school is a piece of crap that gives me nothing but pain :') But, I'm actually really proud of this chapter!!! I'm not too sure why, but I just really like this one hehe
> 
> Hope you enjoyed <3


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: The week is almost over! I'm excited because I'll finally be able to sleep in lolol

To everyone's displeasure, Kurenai-sensei's class was boring. As class went on, the person who seemed to be having the most fun was Kurenai herself. Her curly black hair seemed to move with her as she paced near the blackboard, occasionally writing on the board with chalk. Most students were slowly dozing off, their eyes barely open. Sakura, however, just stared at the notes displayed on the board like a robot.

Kurenai, on the other hand, paid no mind to her students. Not caring whether they listened or not, she continued doing her job. She really didn't care, just as long as they passed her class. Cheers and fist pumps were discreetly passed around the classroom as the bell finally rang.

Slowly walking to her locker, Sakura dumped her three pound textbook into the metal box. Feeling the weight being lifted off of her shoulders made the girl slump. Looking at the schedule posted on top of her locker door, Sakura pulled her rosy, waist-length hair into a low bun. Instantly, her jade eyes sparkled. 

Lunch time! 

><><

Now this was the definition of awkward.

Sakura found herself in the corner of the cafeteria as around one hundred pairs of eyes stared at her. Uncomfortably chuckling at the fellow ninth graders, she took a bite of her chicken sandwich.

"Why are you alone?" The soft yet slightly creepy voice startled the poor girl as she jumped in her seat.

"I- Hello, who are you?" Sakura hesitated, unsure of what to say. She looked up to see what looked to be an older teenage boy with ash grey hair and soft black eyes.

"My names Kabuto. Kabuto Yakushi. And I'm assuming that you're Sakura-chan?" The round glasses he wore sparkled in the artificial light of the school lunchroom.

"Yeah, I am! It's nice to meet you, Kabuto-san," Giving off a warm smile, Sakura motioned for the man to sit next to her. He sat next to her, making sure there's room between them to give each other space.

"So, why are you here? I doubt you're a student here. You look a bit too old for that." Raising his a delicate eyebrow, the petite girl awaited his response.

"Ah, I must say, I'm slightly offended! I don't look that old, do I, Sakura-chan?" He chuckled.

A blush heated onto Sakura's face as she spluttered, "Well, no! Not at all! Just... not young enough to be in middle school!" 

Seeing the girl struggle with embarrassment, Kabuto tossed his head back, howling with laughter.

"I'm just teasing you." He wiped his eyes, moving his glasses out of the way. Relief crossed Sakura's face as she grabbed her apple juice and slurped it down. "Lady Tsunade has requested for a couple of papers, so Jiraiya-sensei sent me to deliver them." Waving the thin packet of papers in the air, Kabuto placed them back onto the table.

"Ah." Sakura nodded in understanding.

A wave of silence washed over the duo, as Sakura shifted in her seat. It wasn't uncomfortable, nor was it pleasant. 

Accepting the hand shake, Kabuto paused.

"Sakura-chan, if I may, could we exchange emails?"

Sakura looked at Kabuto in confusion.

"Email? How about we exchange numbers instead? It'll be much easier to communicate!" Digging in her pocket for her phone, Kabuto raised a palm as to start her.

"Well, I don't have a smart phone."

Opening her mouth to reply, Sakura suddenly clamped her mouth shut. Oh my..., she thought.

"I see. Email it is, then!" After jotting down her email on a slip of paper, she bid the friendly man goodbye. He picked himself up and walked away to the office, waving to her before he slipped out of view.

Pleased with making a new acquaintance, Sakura happily ate the rest of her lunch, rubbing her satisfied belly with a sigh. Although, he didn't have a phone. Pity took over her happiness as she thought about the upperclassman who didn't have enough money to purchase a phone.

The sudden ringing of the bell shocked her to the core. Crap! What class do I even have next?

Rushing to throw the leftover trash away, Sakura scurried over to her locker, sighing as her next class was chemistry.

This particular subject had always been her favorite, and Sakura had always exceeded expectations when it came down to it. And most of all, she wasn't required to carry a textbook around for it! Everything that she needed would already be in the classroom, if not, online on a computer.

Sakura just desperately hoped for a decent teacher this time around. First came the lazy teacher who didn't even bother doing anything important and was always late. Second was the boring teacher who's monotone voice went in from one ear and out the other, nothing being retained in her mind as it all started to blur together and become one.

Once she situated herself into her seat in the room, Sakura found herself entertained, looking at the.. rather odd yet interesting objects around her. In the back corner of the classroom, there sat a large tank, where a black snake stared straight back at the girl.

Situated on top of tank's lid, a tiny, bold red fridge stood proudly on top of it. Snickering, Sakura read the note on the door; My dumplings! Touch it, and you get bitten by Hisa!

At every station set for two, a small box of tubes was laid out, a Bunsen burner next to it. Inside a mini-compartment on the side of the table, two pairs of gloves and goggles were neatly folded inside.

Before she could study anything else, a purple haired woman waddled in. With a stick of dango in her hand and a soda in the other, she barked at two girls, who were busy gossiping, "Hey! Get to your seats! Already the first day, yet you brats are already disrespecting me.."

Walking to the back of the classroom, the bossy lady fed the last ball of dango to Hisa, the black snake cooped up in her case. Scarily enough, she whipped around, throwing the wooden stick coated with dango juice into the trash can with deadly precision. 

Hinata, who was busy sharpening her pencil, squeaked as the stick grazed her hair. Her pale lilac eyes widened as she rushed back to her seat, a couple of others following her.

"Hey, hey, hey! So I have you brats for this class!" The strange woman began, walking back to her desk. "This year is gonna suck!"

Blatantly deadpanning at their chemistry teacher, the students found themselves amused.

"Anyways, so I'm your sensei for chemistry, my name is-"

"Anko-san! I need Sakura Haruno for an interview!" The door was slammed open as Tsunade's piercing hazel eyes scanned the room. 

"You heard the boss, Sakura. Out! Now then, before Principle Tsunade had politely disrupted, my name is Anko..-" 

Sakura softly shut the door behind her, following Tsunade out. "Kaa-san! You didn't even say hi to me!" A fierce and fiery gaze landed on her mother as the stubborn girl crossed her arms.

"Yeah, yeah. I was just doing my job, Saki. I need a break from all these stupid shenanigans, I just bought a new bottle of soju, too!" Seeing the sparkle in the blonde's face at the mention of her alcohol, Sakura rolled her eyes.

The duo walked in silence, knowing that that meant more than words. Hearing the soft hum of the school's heaters, Sakura ran a hand through her hair.

"So, an interview? Let me guess, for I'm Gonna Be A Star?" Sakura turned midstep, watching Tsunade, who nodded in confirmation.

"It's customary for them to interview all ten contestants, you know. Get their background, some juicy details, you know how the show goes." The older woman mused, adjusting her green jacket.

"Right. And at school, while I'm supposed to be in class?" The pink haired beauty pulled her hair out of it's bun, fluffing it so it would look decent during the interview.

"Don't complain. At least you get to escape class for a bit, I still have my paperwork that I have to do and I'm telling you! You're lucky." Tsunade shoved the girl into an empty office room, whispering a silent good luck with her eyes.

Sakura internally raised an eyebrow in disgust, seeing the unprofessional interviewers do their job. For being a part of an international show, shouldn't they choose more... qualified people?

Staring at the woman who had no sense of style in front of her, Sakura hid her grimace. With a tube top that did little to cover up anything, along with her ripped jeans, Sakura found that the amber eyed woman was a fellow contestant.

"The name's Konan! It's nice to meet you, what's your name?" The tongue piercing became visible as Konan smiled, shaking Sakura's hand.

"I'm Sakura Haruno. It's nice to meet you, too, Konan-san!" Sakura smiled back at the purple haired woman. Well, even if she didn't look the part, Konan was polite enough. But gosh, if Sakura saw one more person, no matter who it be, with purple hair, she would explode.

The other contestants filed in, filling up the eight other available chairs. After introducing themselves, Sakura found herself eight more potential friends. That is, unless their rivalry got between it.

Ticking off the names in her mind, Sakura willed herself to remember each and every one of them. Yukimaru, Sai, Ameyuri, Baki, Rin, Konan, Bee, Ranmaru, and, oddly enough, Shisui Uchiha. Who's ever heard of an Uchiha who liked to sing? Well.. maybe Mikoto-san...

To the other contestant's relief, and to Sakura's dismay, she was up first for the interview. As the others shuffled outside, the interviewer smiled.

"Hello, Sakura-san! My name is Haku. Congratulations on making it passed the auditions! How are you today?" The long, black hair that was tied back into a low ponytail fell loosely around the man's shoulders, framing his face.

"Good afternoon, Haku-san. It is my first time back to school in Japan. I haven't been back in around eight years, so it's great to be back!" Sakura accepted the handshake, her eyes crinkling into crescents.

"You left Japan? If I'm correct, you're only fourteen right now, which means you were at the tender age of six when you left, why is that?" Haku's face dissolved into a frown, his worry for the girl increasing.

"Ah, that. There was quite the misunderstanding back then, where my friends and I had a falling out. My parents moved to America to focus on their business, so I of course went with them." Coolly responding, Sakura told only half of the truth.

Well, it was the truth! She just conveniently left out the fact that she didn't go on the same plane as her parents did, and went to a completely different state... but that's besides the fact!

"You've had quite the past, haven't you? You were only six years old, yet you moved to a completely new country, without having the comfort of your friends beside you." Haku raised his eyebrows, wanting to hear more.

Tsunade was right. They were here to suck out every single bit of gossip they could, wanting all of the important and tiny details.

"It was quite difficult, since when you're young you focus on playing with your friends. Suddenly losing them didn't make it any easier. However, I did meet up with a couple of other friends along the way, so it isn't the worst thing in the world." Not wanting to give too much information, Sakura agreed, ending the topic, giving no way for her interviewer to bring it up again.

"I see. It's good that you found a way to help yourself, Sakura-san. Now tell me, why have you decided to audition for I'm Gonna Be A Star? It is also well known that you wrote and produced the song that you made. Would you like to explain?"

Sakura almost snorted. They intended to know everything, didn't they? Well, who would she be to disappoint?

"How To Be A Heartbreaker. One of the very first songs that I wrote. This song isn't exactly directed towards men, despite the lyrics. It just emphasizes the way my old friends had hurt me, and how I don't want it to happen again. As for auditioning, it was because of my passion for music. Many people in my life have despised my dream of becoming a singer, but now that I'm older, they can't stop me now!"

Haku merely nodded at her words, flipping through his question cards. "It seems as though your friends betrayal against you has impacted you, whether it be good or bad. Give the viewers a piece of advice about this situation."

Freezing, the girl's green orbs squinted, deep in thought.

"Well, I know that it will hurt, especially since it's from the people you love the most. However, don't let this change who you are. They're people. They'll get over it, and so will you. The main question you want to ask yourself is whether you want to forgive and forget. If you truly love them, then go for it."

Seeing the discreet way the camera-man nodded at Haku, Sakura noticed that her six minutes had passed.

"Thank you, Sakura-san. Your answers were quite interesting, and we're pleased to have such a competent young woman like you be in our show. Have a lovely day, and please tell Shisui-san to come in next?" Bidding her goodbye, Haku focused back to his job, writing down a new set of questions for the following interview.

After thanking everyone who had compromised of the small recording group, Sakura walked out, stretching her arms above her head. Noticing the stares directed towards her, she blushed.

"Shisui-san, they asked to interview you next." Sakura softly smiled at the curly-haired man, who gave her a wolfish grin in return.

"Good luck. They're tough." Sakura whispered into his ear as the two brushed against each other. The man raised both eyebrows in surprise and confirmation as to hearing her before determinedly strutting in.


	8. Chapter 8

Sakura stood silently in the middle of the gym room, fidgeting with her hair. The students surrounding her chatted endlessly, their voices bouncing off of the long, wide walls. Opting to go sit down on the bleachers, she brushed her hands over the pair of red and white shorts, her white t-shirt with the words KHM GYM adorning it.

Hearing Ino's laugh echo through the room, Sakura watched as the girl threw her head back, smacking her thigh. Luckily, Lee slid into the seat next to her before Sakura could begin to think about how happy Ino was.

"Sakura-san! Looks like we must continue our competition! Right here, right now!" The fire in Lee's soul was apparent as his fist pumped in front of him.

'Ah.. Lee-san! What do you mean by now? Gym hasn't even starte-" Sakura was cut off as a large voice exploded on the opposite side of the gym, near the double doors.

"Kakashi-san! I will destroy you in our next match! You may be winning by one point, but trust me, it won't be for long!" Seeing the older version of Lee made Sakura fervently look between the two.

"Y-you must honor Gai-sensei a lot, huh?" She couldn't contain the sarcasm in her voice as she looked at Lee.

"Yes!! Gai-sensei took me in when I was younger! He made me who I am today, I will always worship him!" 

As if the green spandex, shiny bowl cut, and bushy, rectangular eyebrows weren't screaming that already...

But Sakura found herself happy that Lee had someone by his side. "That's great, Lee. You'll have to introduce me someday."

Lee's large, black eyes widened in agreement as he grabbed her wrist, dragging her over to the two sensei's battling it out. Kakashi was slouching, a hand stuffed into his navy blue trousers. On the other hand, Gai was furiously waving his arms, preparing for the competition.

"-OCK!" As the duo drew closer, Sakura could hear Gai and Kakashi shout.

"PAPER!" An imaginary fire blasted around Gai as a similar blue wave floated dangerously around Kakashi.

"SCISSORS!" The aura tensed as the two prepared their hands, the students holding their breath.

"SHOOT!" On cue, Kakashi threw his hand out in a form of a handshake, meaning he had chosen paper. To Gai's pleasure, he himself as pulled out a sideways peace sign, scissors.

Over half of the gym, who were Kakashi biased, wallowed in despair as said man sulked in the corner. Lee ignored this fact and tears of pride slithered down his face as he and Gai shouted with joy.

"Oh, Gai-sensei! You're truly amazing, to have tied up with Kakashi-sensei!"

"Lee! You've made me proud, continue my legend for me when I'm too old to carry on, huh?" Gai-sensei shot his fist up.

Lee balled up his hands and pulled them closer to him. "Of course I will, Gai-sensei! I'm honored to be trusted with this!" 

The two exchanged a tearful hug as Sakura stood next to them, sweat dropping.

"I hate to interrupt, sensei, but class has already begun.." The green beast duo simultaneously looked at her.

"Oh! Sakura-san! This is Gai-sensei. Gai-sensei, this is the lovely Sakura-san!" Lee dramatically waved towards each mentioned person as he tilted his head side to side.

"You! I feel the youthfulness radiating off of you! You must be Lee's competitor, are you?" Gai flashed a thumbs up towards Lee in approval.

"Ah, yes. It was self declared this morning..." Not knowing how to respond, Sakura weakly smiled at the hyper males.

"Let us put that to the test then! Dodgeball!" Gai turned his attention to the other students, who were either comforting Kakashi, or watching the trio with confusion written on their faces.

"The team captains will be Sakura and L-" The gym teacher was cut off by a slight chirp of a voice.

"And Ino! Me!" The blonde interrupted, narrowing her eyes at Sakura. "Forehead, I'm going to destroy your team!"

Tears dragged down on Gai's face as he sobbed with delight. "Another rivalry! Oh, this generation is oh so youthful! Team captains are Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno!"

Lee sputtered in protest, but seeing the seriousness in Sakura's eyes made him back down.

"I go first, then. Lee, you're on my team!" Devilishly smirking towards Sakura, Ino brightened at the young girl's obvious annoyance.

"Whatever, Pig. Gaara!" Sakura threw a look of satisfaction as she took her brother and protector to her side.

As Sakura and Ino selected people, Sakura noticed that Ino ended up having the slight advantage against Sakura as her team had nine people, whereas Sakura's only had eight. But knowing her team wouldn't back down without a fight, Sakura's eyebrows narrowed in determination.

Everyone grabbed a small ball from the middle of the room, the atmosphere tense. Kakashi and his crew of followers had left a while ago due to their own classes, so the pressure put onto Gai's students wasn't as bad.

With her sensei's signal, Sakura instantly weaved through the many balls being thrown at her. Her eyes swiftly scanned the room as she saw Shino, who stood towards the back with no intentions of playing. Gaara easily took him out.

Jugo was also long gone, since his large appearance didn't help his kind attitude towards others. He refused to hit anyone with a dodgeball, and instead discouraged it. Karin had immediately given up her spot, declaring that her hair and makeup were too important to be wasted on these 'shenanigans'.

This made Ino furiously bite her lip as she was down to just six people, and Sakura still had seven. Sakura took advantage of the flustered blonde and slung a ball towards her arm. Eyes widened, Ino moved to dodge, but in the end, it still scraped her elbow.

Dejected, she walked towards the bleachers, but smirked when she saw Lee doing his job, and had taken down four of Sakura's teammates. It was now five to three, with Ino's team ahead.

Gaara had self sacrificed himself as a ball launched itself towards Sakura's face. Of course, he didn't go out without taking two more people down. The rest of the game was quick, as it was only the skilled players left.

Soon enough, Sakura and Lee stood on the opposite sides of the room, breathing heavily as they were the last to represent their teams.

"Sakura-san, it seems that fate has bestowed it's graciousness to us. May our competition commence!" Lee declared, reading to haul his dodgeball.

"Best of luck to you, Lee. You'll need it!" At that, Sakura's ball had left her hand earlier than Lee's.

However, Lee's speed taken over and he quickly moved to the side, throwing his own to Sakura, who also dodged. Sakura's ponytail threatened to untie itself as sweat dripped into Lee's eye.

The two almost cursed, fixing themselves up. In a flash, Lee threw himself towards Sakura, who was confused. She leaped aside, both of them on the edge of the line separating their sides of the room. To Sakura's loss, a ball was hidden on the backside of Lee's spandex, which was sticky with sweat.

Lee found that the ball would stick anywhere on his spandex, since his sweat flooded through it. Taking his advantage, he distracted Sakura, who was running to a ball. Leaping right in front of her, the two stood, both eyeing the ball Sakura was going for.

In that moment, Lee took his own ball off of his back, softly throwing it at Sakura's stomach. The girl had frozen with shock, as did the rest of the gym, who saw Lee's tactic.

"Lee, that was awesome!!" Sakura exclaimed, jaw agape. As Sakura went on and on about how well he had done, Lee found himself blushing. Nobody, other than his father ever told him they were proud of him.

It was that moment when Lee decided that he would love and protect Sakura forever. It was obvious that Sakura didn't love him in that way, in which Lee respected. So, he wouldn't press it and instead, embrace the feeling of friendship that she offered, like an angel giving a hand to the dead.

Of course, Sakura wasn't ignorant. She knew about Lee's feelings towards her, as he in no way tried to hide it. However, Sakura understood that he would get over it, for he was Lee, a man who respected everyone in their own rights.

Class had ended rather abruptly after the dodgeball game, and Sakura found herself collapsing on one of the benches as she pushed her arms through the armholes of her shirt. Smoothing out a few of the wrinkles, she stood.

Sakura readjusted her ponytail into a messy bun that sat lazily at the nape of her neck. Spritzing a bit of perfume on her wrist, Sakura slung her backpack onto her back.

"Forehead!" The exclamation was quiet, but still heard.

"Ino-pig, what is it?" Sakura's soft spot for her previous best friend was still there. She couldn't help it!

"I... can we talk? I don't think something's adding up. You know, the thing between us." Her baby blue eyes creased towards the end in curiosity.

"Yeah, we can. I have a few questions, too. It never did make sense, did it?" Sakura resisted the smile cracking onto her face, just the sides of her lips tilting upwards.

"Great! Starbucks at the mall at five?"

Sakura mulled it over. School had technically already ended, and Temari would come to pick her and Gaara up in about five minutes, meaning she'd have enough time to shower and get ready.

Ino's eyes sparkled as Sakura nodded in affirmation. Sakura found herself grinning idiotically as she met up with her siblings at the front of the school.

"Woah, hold your horses girl. What's got you so happy happy?" Temari raised a suspicious eyebrow towards Sakura, who just giggled in response.

"Ino's giving me a chance! We're meeting up to talk about what happened!" 

This time, Kankuro turned around from his driver's seat, "Isn't this really sudden, Sakura? First day of school, and she finally confronts you?"

"Well, I'd best take the chance now. I need to clear up things, after all," Sakura shrugged. She did find it a bit weird, but her gut told her she needed to know.

><><

With the hot water pounding onto her back, Sakura frowned as she lathered her vanilla scented shampoo into her hair. If anything, she remembered Neji and Kiba mentioning that her parents would be coming back a day after she left. 

Were they still here?

In the end, Sakura decided to not waste anymore time on the people who abandoned her. She had better things to do, like figure out what the hell happened between her and her friends and why they never gave her a chance to defend herself.

Adjusting the black leggings to a better fit, Sakura walked to a nearby bus stop. Luckily enough, the mall wasn't terribly far away, meaning it'd just be a short ride there and back. 

Making sure she had the apartment keys, which she shared with Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara, Sakura felt for her phone in her small bag before settling onto the blue bench.

It was only 4:30 pm when Sakura walked into the mall, and once she checked to see that Ino wasn't yet at Starbucks, she decided to walk around.

The following Saturday was just around the corner, and was also the day when Sakura would record her vocal battle between herself and Rin, who had shoulder length brown hair with matching doe-like eyes. The girl seemed much older than Sakura herself, maybe twenty-six?

Sakura settled herself into Forever 21, searching for an outfit for her performance. 

It was exactly 5 o'clock when both Sakura and Ino bumped into each other walking into Starbucks. They chuckled, noticing the obvious bags of clothing in the others' hands.

"Looks like we had the same idea, huh, forehead?" Hearing the endearing nickname, Sakura smiled.

"Maybe we did, Pig." Ino stuck her tongue out as they situated themselves onto the couch in the corner.

"Let's get out drinks first, then talk, ne?" Sakura asked, already walking up to the counter.

"Wait, but, our bags- nevermind," Ino grinned, joining Sakura, inputting her order. They were the only two in the small shop, anyways.

Tentatively taking a sip of her caramel frappuccino, Sakura looked at Ino, who was busy unwrapping her straw.

"Well, how have you been? We haven't seen each other in so long!" Blue eyes clashed with green as Ino smiled at Sakura.

"Oh, it's the same old kinda thing. Nothing's really happened, we just continued on, almost forgetting you," Ino explained, finally opening the straw wrapper.

"Yeah, it was kind of weird. How did you guys suddenly find my Instagram post?" Sakura asked, crossing her legs.

"Oh, well... Karin posted it everywhere. There were ugly flyers of you surrounding the classrooms in school. It wasn't hard to find your account, though," Setting down her iced coffee, Ino handed her phone over.

To say the least, Sakura was shocked. It was an edit, making her look like an ugly, old man. A pink mustache and beard adorned her face as a unibrow topped it off. Karin had 'dyed' her hair orange, making it clash with the jade eyes. Overall? It was an abomination!

Cringing, Sakura immediately handed the phone back, "That's gross," she commented. Ino nods and takes her phone back.

"Okay, but seriously. There's something I really don't understand about our situation," Ino stated seriously, pushing her bags to the side. "Tell me everything, from your side of the story!"

Taking a deep breath, Sakura visited her memories. She had just gotten to the part when Misa-san had found the note hidden inside of her baby dress when shouts rang through the small café.

"Ino! What're you doing here?" Tenten marched up to the small couch that was currently inhabited by Ino and Sakura, Hinata hot on her heels.

"We were supposed to meet up at Sasuke-kun's, remember?" The pale, lilac eyes narrowed at Sakura. Her usual soft voice had a sharp edge to it.

Before the blonde could respond, she was dragged away. Tenten hooked her arm with Ino's, glaring at Sakura, who sat dumbfounded. Hinata, who was busy gathering Ino's belongings completely ignored Sakura.

"I'll text you, forehead!" Ino struggled to call out, as Tenten pulled her further and further away.

Sakura dumped her frappuccino into the garbage bin on her way out. "Damn, were they rough on Ino..."


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for the support on this book! It means so much and I love all of you <3

"So, Ino. Wanna explain?" Tenten sneered, pulling a face towards the nervous yet confident girl. She wore a short red cheongsam based dress outlined with white, wearing long, black spandex shorts underneath, hiding the multitude of weapons she held for self-defense. She stood in front of Ino, who was sitting on a blue office seat that Sasuke has in his room for studying at his desk. Ino didn't flinch as she glared at Tenten.

"I told you while you were dragging my here, Tenten. I just wanted to find out the truth! I was about to, too. But then you and Hinata pulled me away right before I got to find out!" The platinum blonde threw her hands in the air, exasperated, her purple turtleneck crop top stretching across her body. As she put her hands down to cross her arms, she crossed her legs with her short, purple asymmetrical skirt with white shorts underneath, her white belt clinking slightly.

"What kind of truth are you trying to find? We already know the truth, she's a bitch who wanted nothing more than to manipulate us into following her around acting like slaves." Sasuke was livid. First, Ino was his fangirl. Now she was defending Sakura? She was so quick to switch sides. He spread his legs out on his bed, sitting at the edge next to Kiba and Shino. His black skinny jeans stretched, untucking some of his black tee shirt. He rested his elbows on his legs, folding his hands together. His expensive rings clinked together from interacting, but he didn't mind. 

"If you'd just let me finish explaining, maybe you'd find out what we were told could've be a lie!" Ino started to get annoyed. Yes, she was stubborn, and so were her friends. But they refused to even listen to her!

"Okay, then what happened?" Shino cut in dully, stopping the growing protests of his friends surrounding them. He sat next to Sasuke, his white raincoat he always wore suffocating his face. He always wore these tiny, round sunglasses, and nobody's ever seen his without them. Shino straightened his spine, giving him the effect of looking taller.

Sasuke took in a small breath, looking at the sight of his room. What did he do to deserve this? Oh, right. His house was always the only one always available with enough room to fit everyone. Scowling, he stared down at the litter scattered around his room with a glare. Chip bags and beverage cans sat around his room, nobody even bothering to pick them up and throw them away.

"She got home, and it was really dark! Then, there was this note on the kitchen counter that her parents wrote. It said something like 'Sakura, your father and I have decided to go to the States. Since you're six, you can take care of yourself just fine. Stay safe, Mom.' or something like that. But then she fell asleep crying and was woken up by Mallory, we all know her," Ino explained, imitating Sakura's mother. She swung her arms around as she spoke, her purple nails glittering.

They all nodded in unison as Sasuke tuned back into the conversation, finishing off his glaring match with the trash littering the bedroom floor.

"So it was, like, eleven in the morning or whenever. Apparently, Mallory-san already knew that her parents were leaving, she just didn't know why. They were supposed to know when Sakura turned ten, but Mallory-san just got it over with.

It was supposedly in Sakura's baby dress, since she'd never look into it until she had to throw away her old things, or at least pack them, I guess? There was another note in there that explained why her parents left, but those two," Ino shot an angry look towards Tenten and Hinata, both tensing slightly, before continuing, "Interrupted and took me away before I got the chance to find out anything else."

A long pause took over the ten teenagers, all deep in thought as they considered this newly acquired information. Nobody ever considered doubting their parents, especially at their age. Now that they were older, it was only natural that they would question their parents' authority.

"But... why don't we know the truth?" Naruto, the usually loud and obnoxious one, spoke for the first time since meeting up. Everyone looked at him as guilt and confusion clouded his sky blue eyes. He leaned against the foot of Sasuke's bed, his orange DIY bomber jacket crinkling against the friction of Sasuke's sheets and Naruto's jeans. He frowned deeply as he slowly seemed to spiral down into his emotions.

"And our parents, too. What happened?" Choji added on, taking a break from devouring a bag of potato chips.

Neji, who donned a thoughtful look on his face usually cold face, spoke up. "Well, we clearly don't know as much as we should." He leaned against the wall next to the door, his white button up and dark blue pants matching up quite well with his slouchy sweater.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious," Kiba snorted, holding onto a small dog who he deemed Akamaru. "So then, what do we do?"

"I mean, we can't just go back to being buddy-buddy with her. Just don't be rude to her," Hinata trailed off, taking one of her hands up to cover her mouth. She wore a big, baggy jacket with giant sleeves that seemed to consume her.

It was crystal clear that everyone was walking on thin ice when talking about Sakura and their parents. As ten pairs of eyes swung across the room, a certain brown-haired girl with buns frowned.

"That- Sakura. I don't really trust her, okay! You can't blame me here! She can't just come back after so many years!" Tenten crossed her arms before sighing.

"I'll give her a chance. Just don't expect it to come so naturally. Stop looking at me like that!"

><><

Releasing the final piece of curled strawberry hair, Temari straightened herself, her sleeves slowly crawling back down to her wrist.

"Damn, Sakura! Who are you and what have you done to my ugly best friend?" She teased, tucking a strand of hair behind the girl's ear. They were in the bathroom, Temari behind Sakura and Gaara standing next to Sakura with her face cupped by his hand.

Kankuro, who was on the couch with his phone, looked up wide-eyed. He grinned, his purple makeup standing out against his black clothing consisting of a hoodie that never came off of his head with cat ears and a 

"Damn, Sakura! Lookin' good!" A wolf whistle rang from the living room as the cat-eared boy complimented her. Gaara, applying the final swoop of Sakura's eyeliner, stepped back to look at his handiwork.

"Sakura, you should use eyeliner more. Here, take mine," He handed over a small tube of black eyeliner.

"What is with you guys and saying stuff like that?" Sakura mimicked the shocked looks that the trio had presented her. The siblings laughed at her facial expressions, ringing through the echoic bathroom.

In the midst of her chuckling, Temari shoved Gaara out of the bathroom, tossing in a bright yellow behind her to Sakura as she shut the door.

"Hey! Those are my clothes for the performance!" A muffled shout was heard as Temari smirked.

Sliding on her thigh high boots, Sakura smoothed out her skirt, walking out.

"What's up with the hat?" Kankuro snatched the wide sunhat off of her head, placing it on his own.

Sakura's eyes twitched as she nabbed the hat back on her head, adjusting it.

"It's to look cool! When they get my little walk into the building scene, I have to look good!" She looked in the blank television, using it as a mirror.

Rolling his eyes, Kankuro picked up his phone to order an uber to take them to the studio.

The ride to the large building was short and sweet and as Sakura stepped out of the white SUV for the first time, the blinking lights flashing at her in a blinding matter.

Temari nodded towards Sakura before signaling to the driver and slowly rolling away from the scene, leaving Sakura with the paparazzi. A small smile eased onto her face as she elegantly twisted her hat on her head, walking down the pathway, her three inch heels clicking against the pavement. She entered the building, a mishmash smell of perfumes and colognes wafting to her nose as she looked away to cough. She was immediately guided by two large, muscular men in suits to the waiting room with the rest of the contestants. As Sakura greeted her fellow contestants, she was almost instantly whisked away from them to an interview.

"Sakura-san! It's a pleasure to meet you again," Haku's friendly and light voice welcomed her as she sat onto the sky blue couch, sinking into the pillowy cushions. Haku's long, black hair flowed elegantly onto his pink kimono patterned with cherry blossoms, oddly fitting with Sakura's hair.

"It's great seeing you again, too, Haku-san. How are you?" Sakura breezily responded, hiking her right leg over her left.

"Doing as well as I can be at the moment. Let's start, shall we?"

Hearing the discreet avoidance of her question, Sakura mentally frowned. As well as he can... at the moment? 

"For today's battle, you'll be going up against Rin Nohara, a rising star on Youtube. She's known for her amazing vocals and stunning looks. You're known right now as one of the most promising candidates of this batch. How are you feeling?" Haku had jumped straight into the interview, now turning on his professional mode. He smiled at Sakura, hoping to get some juicy details from her. He leaned in a little closer to her to hear her comment.

"I've never thought about that," Sakura laughed. "Singing with Rin-san is an honor. I'm excited and I wish her luck."

"For this first round, to make things easier on all twelve participants, you will all be performing your own songs that you chose. Would you like to talk about yours?" Leaning forward, the mic pack on Haku's back slipped out, making a soft thump on the couch. He quickly recovered the pack and fastened it back onto his back.

"This song is another one that I wrote myself, called 'Die A Happy One'*. It talks about my memories from when I was younger and the lyrics are pretty self explanatory once you hear it," The corners of her lips tipped upward as Sakura spoke.

"I see. Well, best of luck to you, for you're up now!" Haku stood up, gesturing for her to do the same. The two bowed to each other slightly, stepping out of the interviewing room lined with lots booths as if it were a dressing and waiting room.

On her way to the stage, she was stopped by her partner, Rin. She stood over Sakura in a very kind yet odd way.

"Sakura-san, we're going against each other. Good luck," The simple words tumbled out of Rin's mouth as the her shoulder length brown hair spilled out onto her face from being tucked behind her ears.

"As to you, Rin-san. I'm sure we'll both do well!" Sakura fake smiled as she bowed to her competitor. Walking away from the older woman, Sakura couldn't help but frown. Although Rin's words seemed kind enough, she could tell that behind them hid a small bit of malice that she couldn't shake off. 

Entering the stage, Sakura was greeted by a large audience and the judges, spinning around in their chairs to look at her.

Zabuza Momochi, Mei Terumī, and Kelly Clarkson were all settled down at long desk-like table. The shiny white counter would momentarily blind anyone who had just walked in, including Sakura.

Silently wincing at the bright lights above her, which reflected on the glossy floors and tables, Sakura stood at the blue X, which was situated just a couple of feet in front of the judges. In all honesty, she was quite shocked to find that two of the judges were from Japan, but it made sense that not all three judges from America could've made it.

Zabuza, she noticed, was a strict man who came straight to business. Even if he wasn't a singer himself, the man still held a high reputation in the music industry, being known for his flexibility as long as he was payed. His brown skin with grey undertones fit his light blue tuxedo and white face mask, rendering his face unreadable.

Mei, on the other hand, had long, red hair flowing freely to the ground, her eyes wrinkling as she smiled at Sakura. She was the mayor of Kirigakure, and had a fantastic relationship with her fellow judge, Kelly Clarkson. She wore a bright cyan colored dress that fit her like a glove, fitting her body in a way that pleased the eyes.

Kelly was the loud and rather boisterous one out of the trio, balancing against Zabuza nicely. Despite the obvious language barrier between her and other Japanese citizens, she still learned quickly, and could now speak quite fluently considering the time crunch. She wore a simple black dress, careful not to stand out from her clothing. She had first started the show due to her own memories from the X-Factor, the show that had started her fame. Wanting to create more great memories and experiences for others like her, Kelly had started I'm Gonna Be A Star.

Sakura stood up to the mic, coughing a little to get everyone's attention. The judges, namely Kelly, quieted down as they waited for her to sing. As she opened her mouth to release a heavenly sound, Sakura closed her eyes and sung her heart out.

"Baby, that night was hands down,  
One of the best nights  
That I've had, no doubt  
Between the bottle of juice  
And the look in your eyes and the disco ball  
Then we danced in the dark under September stars in the pourin' rain

Baby, that that red dress brings me to my knees  
Oh, but that black dress makes it hard to breathe  
You're a saint, you're a god, the cutest, the hottest, a masterpiece  
It's too good to be true, nothing better than you  
In my wildest dreams  
And I know that I can't ever tell you enough  
That all I need in this life is your crazy love  
If I never get to see the Northern Lights  
Or if I never get to see the Eiffel Tower at night  
Oh, if all I got is your hand in my hand  
Baby, I could die a happy one, yeah, yeah, mmm"  
Gently pressing her soft fingers against the final chord on the piano, Sakura stood and bowed. A certain gleam in her eye sparkled as the judges stared at her, completely baffled. The three renowned business workers excitedly questioned her as she patiently explained her song.

"..my memories from when I was younger, with the best people I could ever ask for," She finished, and was dismissed just moments after.

The rambunctious applause greeted her as she stepped into the dressing room on her way out. Pleading luck to her competitor, Sakura met up with her sibling-like friends, who were, once again, proud but not surprised.

Kankuro leaned over from the passenger's seat, ruffling the girl's hair. It had become a habit of his that only started around a year ago, when Sakura first met their father. His faded red hair almost matched Gaara's, but his eyes were his own. Although the pupils were barely existent, making him look like a stern and stoic man, the wrinkles on the sides of his mouth when he smiled said otherwise. They would quirk up ever so often whenever his hand reached out to ruffle Sakura's pink locks.

Her hair had immediately reminded him of the times that he and his late wife would visit Konoha, enjoying each others' presence underneath the sakura trees. The older man's affection for his children's friend only grew from there, when he learned how the four acted around each other, making him reminisce in his own memories with his friends.

His eldest son had caught the endearment from his father, and from then on, would mess with the Sakura's hair whenever he could. Sakura didn't particularly mind, but when her hair was curled to perfection, she couldn't help but become slightly annoyed.

"My hair, you jerk!" She pouted, shooting a look of distaste towards the older guy in front of her.

A loud laugh escaped Kankuro as the car skidded to a halt at a stop sign. From the familiar trees surrounding them, Sakura could only guess that they were going to their favorite dango shop, which was only three turns away.

"Dango?" She inquired, almost drooling at the thought. Ever since she was young, she always looked forwards to dango as it was her all time favorite dessert. Unfortunately, it was really hard to find good dango in the States. 

"You know it!" Temari pumped her fist in the air. It wasn't every day that they would be able to get dango, because they would instantly be overloaded with sweets, going into a constant sugar drive from eating too much.

Not so gracefully pulling into an empty parking space, Kankuro sauntered into the dango shop, leaving his three siblings to deal with the car. Rolling his eyes at his brother's antics, Gaara shut his door, effectively locking the entire car, and followed him, leaving the two girls alone.

Sparing each other a brief glance, Sakura and Temari let out an exasperated sigh, walking in behind the two boys. Once placing their orders, the little group huddled into the corner of the small yet packed shop, awaiting their dango and hot tea.

Across the shop sat a group of eight staggeringly beautiful men, with one of Sakura's new friends, Yutaka Konan. As soon as the amber eyed woman spotted the flash of cherry blossom pink, she made her way to Sakura, her purple hair bouncing slightly with an unstable looking origami flower in her hair. This time, she appeared to wear a cropped tee patterned with red clouds outlined with white on a black backdrop. Her labret piercing was a simple ring this time, compared to her usual stud.

"Konan-san, it's nice meeting you here. How'd your match go?" Looking at the nine hot men around her, Inner Sakura practically fainted. They all wore jackets of some variation with the same pattern as Konan's top, looking like either a dedicated fan group or a gang. Sitting at two tables pushed together, they all looked completely different.

The oldest in the group seemed to be a man who hid his entire face behind a giant hood and a black surgical mask, his eyes looking dead with huge bags under his eyes. The guy next to him had two different skin tones from what seemed to be vitiligo, a skin condition that makes certain parts of your skin loose pigment. His skin split almost perfectly into two halves on his face. He had green hair and a shirt that had a venus flytrap on it, along with a green choker patterned around his neck with green flowers.

On his left sat a shark-looking man with a blue hue to his skin and fake gills on his cheeks. He had a toothy smile filled with sharp teeth, like a shark's. He was bothering a black haired guy with what seemed to be not only the cloud symbol, but a Uchiha crest on his necklace as well. He looked a little like Sasuke, but more mature and aged. He was reading a book in his hand, unbothered by the shark man's attempt to get a reaction out of him. 

A blonde man with clay in his hands and hair covering his left eye, much like Ino, was having a quiet conversation with a smaller, red haired man who had a puppet in his hand. The puppet, from what Sakura could see, looked so realistic it was scary. She shuddered slightly as her gaze came to the two men that Konan was sitting next to, one with red hair much like the puppeteer's and very strange purple contacts that had rings much like the hypnotizing circles you see, and the other with orange hair like a tiger's. They both looked at Sakura, the red head looking dully as his friend looked happily. 

"Please, Sakura-chan. Konan works just fine. I was up against Sai, as you know. He was easy to deal with. It appears like he gave up," Konan's sweet tenor turned frustrated. She didn't like that the competition wasn't fair, for she put her soul into her performance, while her opponent couldn't even give a damn.

"I think you would've won anyways, Konan-chan," Sakura attempted to soothe the woman, who was suddenly very upset.

"Who the fuck are you, pinky bitch?" Giving a wide smirk to the girl, a silver haired man propped his leg up onto the beam underneath the table he was sitting at. His jacket barely covered his bare chest, in a very uncomfortable way. He snarled at Sakura.

"I could ask the same to you, old man," Sakura coolly responded, before slightly bowing to the ten people in front of her.

"It seems my food has arrived. Text me later, Konan-chan. Maybe we can hangout sometime!" Bidding her goodbyes, Sakura held her composure until she sat down with the sand siblings. Her eyes suddenly blazed with fire as she shoved a piece of dango down her throat. Doing her little happy dance, she hummed.

"It's as good as I remember," Kankuro muttered, inhaling another stick as Gaara grabbed his fourth.

"Shut up, Kankuro," The weak threat did nothing as Temari was also busy pressing as many chunks of dango in her mouth as possible, effectively looking like a chipmunk as she did so.

Sweating at the scene before her, it took Sakura's entire will to not join them, as she was aware of the blatant stares digging into the back of her pink head.

"Ah, Haruno-san. What a surprise, to bump into you here. You did fantastic at your performance earlier," Zabuza Momochi stood in front of her, his tall figure overwhelmingly taking over her small, sitting stance. It didn't help that he wore a suit that seemed to make his shoulders much wider than Sakura assumed they actually were.

"Momochi-san! It's nice seeing you. Thank you for your praises, I really don't deserve them," The fourteen year old girl smiled, offering a cup of tea to him.

Nobody noticed the small man sitting in the corner where it was completely dark, hiding his facial features almost completely. He grinned, peering through the small crack of his hat and coat.

"Sakura-chan, you will be mine!" He smirked, pulling his black leather gloves back on, slapping down a few yen as payment as they coins clinked together.

"It's only a matter of time before I get my hands on you."


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Naruto doesn't belong to me (obviously) And yes, there were some ages changed within this story, for many specific reasons! (All members of Akatsuki are 2 years older than our beloved Sakura and Konoha 10) Enjoy!

Ino was frustrated. Everything seemed so- simple. No, scratch that. It was right under her _damned_ eyes! How she didn't realize it was beyond her and only made her want to pull out her long, luscious locks of blonde. After her stay at the Uchiha's, her father, who had one of the sharpest blue eyes in Konoha, instantly caught on, knowing something was wrong.

Despite wanting to keep it down inside of her, Ino decided that upon anyone, her father would know. Hell, he was the one who spilled the secret of Sakura! Her eyes instantly narrowed. A secret, or perhaps, _a lie?_

She had to know. And so, after letting loose of all her suspicions of Sakura, and that something was utterly wrong in the logics of the situation, Inoichi Yamanaka had visibly relaxed, grinning. "You truly are a Yamanaka, aren't you," He had replied, leaning back into the wooden dining chair behind him. 

Behind her, Ino's mother bustled about the kitchen, throwing out empty containers of food. "Oh, Inoichi, just tell the girl already, why don't you!" Her mother readily scolded, making the man chuckle.

The fact that she hadn't known this for all fourteen years of her life made her hang her head in shame. Remembering what her father told her made her head swirl. Orochimaru was just a sensei at Konoha Elementary, right? How could he, an academy teacher, be such a vile man to do such things?

The only worse part was that Ino had no way to confide with her friends of the information she had just learned. It was so unfair. Why did she have to be the one to bear this sudden information? She couldn't even hug Sakura and sob apologies into her shoulders, damn it!

><><

Uzumaki Naruto was in no better shape. He had just watched Sakura's most recent performance, which had blown up on social media. He knew that curiosity would've taken over his sense sooner or later, and much preferred to watch the video now.

To say he was shocked would've been the understatement of the year. Jaw dropped and hand in the middle of his blonde spikes, Naruto was floored. Embarrassment, fondness, and sadness all raced through his heart in one. Fingers scrambling to the remote of his tv, he hurriedly replayed it.

_"Baby, that that red dress brings me to my knees  
Oh, but that black dress makes it hard to breathe~"_

Pause! With no intentions on holding back, Naruto all but cackled at the words. Yeah, this was the Sakura that Naruto knew. Before he could contain his thoughts, the flashback flew through his eyes once more.

Nobody would have _ever_ thought that the contest between the little four year old's could go this way, especially Sasuke and Naruto, the competitors. Each time Sasuke pulled out a rock, so would Naruto. When Naruto brought his flattened palm out, Sasuke could only copy him.

The never ending cycle annoyed the two, pushing them to violently play, their voices becoming hoarse the more and more they yelled at each other, accusing one another of cheating. Soon enough, Shikamaru stepped in. The rest of the group never knew his secret, and the small genius would never tell anyone.

Sasuke and Naruto truly were cut from the same cloth; they always played the same sequence. _Scissors, Rock, Paper._ The first time it happened may have been a coincidence, but the sixth time in a row? Nope.

Thoroughly puzzling the duo, and everyone else watching, the group fell into peals of laughter as this only meant one thing. _Both_ Naruto and Sasuke would have to face the consequences of losing.

Sasuke walking out in a red dress was the last thing Mikoto would have ever seen coming, including six year old Itachi. But, seeing a stumbling Naruto following his rival and best friend dressed in a black dress was something that made the two ready to faint.

It was truly a day that nobody would ever forget. _Sakura_ sure didn't, Naruto tapped a finger against his chin, confused. Clearly, Sakura didn't show any signs of being harmful to anyone. Deep down, he knew something was wrong. He just couldn't find it within himself to accuse his parents of lying.

><><

Sasuke sneezed, cursing as he washed the tomato again, ridding it of all the germs. _I swear, that dobe-_

Carefully slicing it, he pushed the cubes into the steaming stew. It bubbled gratefully, taking the tomatoes in quickly. In return, he received the refreshing aroma of tomato and basil. Even if his parents had been gone for many years, he at least had his older brother help teach him a few or so tricks. _Had._

It was years ago, back when Sasuke was just eight. In all honesty, the memories were slightly hazy, yet the message was clear. Itachi betrayed the family, and that was that. Normally, he wouldn't be one to judge so quickly, but having Sakura betray their friendship not less than two years ago, and his older brother just after that? Not something Sasuke would like to think about.

However petty it seemed, it was his way of blocking out the bad memories. The last time Sasuke ever willingly talked to his elder brother was when he was eleven, and that was to bid their parents goodbye on their trip to Japan. For the company. And that was _three_ years ago.

The company was always something that the little boy couldn't understand. Itachi was perfect for the job; he caught on quickly, he knew how to do _everything_ , so why was he so against it? The present sixteen year old male hated the mention of the company, avoided all contact with it, including his father, as much as he could, of course.

Everyone knew he was a momma's boy. It was clear as day, the way he favored the sweet, loving woman compared to the hard and distrustful man that created his father. And yet Fugaku always put his attention on the elder, despite their shortcomings.

Sasuke, putting aside the soft spot in his heart for his mother, strived for his father's attention. Something that Itachi didn't even have to try, and yet received. It frustrated Sasuke to no end, but there was nothing he could do! 

Ladling out a few spoonful's of tomato soup, his mouth practically watered as he set the bowl down onto the table, grabbing his phone behind him. During his mind rant, a few notifications had blared from his friends' group chat.

_Naruto: Have you guys listened yet?_

_Ino: to what_

_Naruto: Sakura's latest performance duh ^_^_

_Hinata: I just listened.. was she..?_

_Kiba: HANJAJKS KJ she brought up and you and tomato boy'ssbjkanJJ_

_Naruto: -_-_

_Naruto: teme_

_Sasuke: ?_

_Naruto: TAKE THE DAMN HINT AND LISTEN TO IT TEME_

_Sasuke: dobe_

As Naruto began his oh so holy ranting about Sasuke's displeasure of everything, and especially ramen, which to be fair, Sasuke wasn't against ramen, he was just against Naruto with ramen. ' _It's an absolute disgrace for an Uchiha to be seen with someone who has table manners such as this!'_ He'd fume, crossing his arms.

Moments later, he knew exactly what Naruto and Kiba were talking about. In fact, a blush grew on his face as he shoved in another mouthful of tomato soup. _Damn it._ After that incident, his mother practically worshipped that red dress, claiming she would never let him burn it, or else she would burn his tomatoes. His _tomatoes_!

The way the words were spoken so cheerfully, with a smile on her face that almost made Sasuke recoil years later. It certainly made Itachi and his father cower, of course. Smirking at how inferior the Uchiha men were at the woman's feet, he responded.

_Naruto: teme you absolutely freaking asshead!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! how DARE you always insult my dear ramen like that!!! My kaa-chan would be disappointed, ya know?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!!! oh yea, she said you should come over more cause we're always going to yours and she never gets to see you or something like that_

_Naruto: oh i almost forgot. how was the thingy?_

_Ino: Naruto you cant just say 'thingy' and be done with it! But I'm dying, that was WAY too good_

_Sasuke: hn._

Leave it to Naruto to add all those exclamation marks, Sasuke thought disdainfully. 

><><

It was Friday, and yet all Sakura wanted to do was curl up in a little ball and sleep the day away. Groggily, she came to her senses once the sun had decided to burn it's way through her eyelids. It was such a slow week, and honestly, she was just glad that it would be the last day she had to go to school until the weekend came.

"Sleep," Sakura found herself moaning. The most craved thing in her life, her true lover, although food came in as a close second. Slapping a hand to her mouth, she stifled a yawn, crawling out of the sheets.

With little to no consciousness as to what she was doing, she brushed her teeth, hair, did her makeup, got dressed, and was downstairs plopping a piece of bread in the toaster when she finally snapped out of her daze.

Taking a bite of the freshly buttered toast, she stuffed the last of her notebooks into the black and white backpack on the couch. Checking her schedule on the blue binder one last time, she was pleased to find her favorite classes all in one day. Well, maybe not so much as classes, but the teachers and people.

Slightly wiggling her body to the music playing in the background speaker, which Temari had the courtesy to buy back when they were still in the States, Sakura not so patiently waited for her siblings.

One by one, they all came down, in their own sort of way. Kankuro grumbled the whole way, only finding some pleasure in the toast being stuffed into his mouth, which was only done so for him to shut up, but that was something Sakura would never tell him.

Temari happily bounded into the kitchen and living room in one, greeting them with a flash of a smile. She was always a morning person, although a night person as well. She'd stay up late in the night only to wake up early in the morning, something Kankuro could never figure out the ‘secret’ to.

Lastly, Gaara came in, his backpack slung across one shoulder. A small nod was sent their way and he sat on the couch next to Sakura, feeling his cheeks warm a considerate bit due to the fireplace in front of them.

Poking the lightly reddened cheeks of Gaara, Sakura giggled. “We really have to go now. School starts in uhh-” She checked her phone. “ _Fifteen_ minutes!”

That startled them. Quickly, they piled into the car, Kankuro with the keys in hand, quickly jammed them in to start it. Practically speeding his way down, which he would never admit to Temari, knowing the nightmares he would place upon himself. Normally, he'd be rushing away to Konoha High with Temari, but their father had saved their lives when keeping the four in the same grade, despite the age differences. This was so that they could keep each other company, in which they were all secretly relieved with.

Since coming from the US, they were struck by the different schooling systems of Japan, which was something they hadn't learned yet. Elementary schools were the same, first grade to fifth. But middle schools and high schools were changed, at least in their books. Middle was sixth through ninth, whereas high school was tenth and all the way to twelfth, where they'd graduate.

Sakura quietly conversed with Gaara as they ate their lunch. A simple chicken and lettuce wrap, sliced apples, and a cardboard box of milk made up her meal. Sadly, she and Gaara had very little classes together. In fact, the only class that the four of them shared was homeroom and first block with Kakashi. The only good part of it was that they had math every day.

Just minutes after sitting down, the elder two placed down their trays of food with a satisfying slap. In the midst of the chattering ninth graders, the four were particularly silent, shoveling food down their mouths. Kankuro choked, making Gaara frown and slap him on the back. "What're you doing here?" Kankuro accused, pointing a slightly stubby finger at the new table participants.

It was Konoha 10 and Lee, who all settled down on their chairs, the commotion of all sudden weight crashed upon the old table as it squealed in protest before quieting. Ino sent a hesitant smile, tossing her classic ponytail over her shoulder. "Hi, Forehead. We saw your performance," She said, trailing off.

"You guys actually watched it?" Sakura asked in disbelief, and with a little embarrassment in the memories placed beneath the song. The group nodded as a spout of red grew on the tips of Naruto's ears. "Yeah, but that's kind humiliating, ya know?"

Kiba let out a snort. "Naruto- knowing a big word like humiliating? Never heard of that before!" A chuckle of laughter passed through the table as the now heated blonde shot back. "I'm surprised you even know such a word existed, Kiba!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bad ending, yes. But I actually learned from my editor that the grades in Japan are different compared to the US! So if there are any confusing details from the previous chapters, hopefully this helps clear it up!


	11. Chapter 11

"Lord Gatō, how may I be of your assistance?" Zabuza kneeled, the loose bandage around his head tickling his ear as his head bowed forward. However badly he wanted to push it aside, the man remained still.

"Rise, Zabuza, my servant," Gatō's short legs strutted about the room, taking in the papers that were stapled against the wall. Zabuza stood tall, yet his gaze remained lowered, at the old man's feet.

"That _girl_ , give me updates!" The man snapped, making Zabuza hide a scowl. His almost greyed skin darkened around his eyes as he secretly glowered. "She just passed the second round, sir, with remarks over the moon."

Gatō paused, letting the information sink in. Rapidly cursing under his breath, he pulled at his hair. "I hired you and set you up as one of the judges for a reason, damn it! Do your _fucking_ job! I need that girl, and soon." With a wave of his hand, Zabuza was dismissed, annoyed at the rude remarks being thrown at him. Nevertheless, he exited, signaling Haku to follow him with a tilt of his head.

The bandage brushed against his ear. "God fucking hell! Haku, fix this bandage!" The long haired boy rushed to his side, carefully tucking the clean, white tape over his master's ear and under the remaining bandages. Haku had just recently discovered the reasonings behind this bandage which covered his mouth. Zabuza's teeth were jagged, like sharp canines.

"Master," Haku's soft voice soothed the man's temper. "What is the next step to our plan?"

"We take the girl. As soon as fucking possible. Discreetly, though. I'm not going to the damned jail for this, no matter how much that shitty _tiny_ man is paying me." 

Frowning at his words, Haku shoved his displeasure to the side. He didn't like this one bit; not the plan, and especially not the reasoning behind it. Sure, he'd done plenty of black market dealing himself, as a seventeen year old boy, but this was taking it way too far.

Taking out notorious criminals and gangs was his ordeal, but kidnapping a middle schooler girl.. Haku couldn't even think about finishing the thought. It was too vile, something he would never wish upon anyone, even his worst enemy. And yet, Zabuza, his precious master, was going with it. Haku's frown deepened. However cold the man could be, he was never like this. He'd have to do something about it, and quick.

><><

Haruno Sakura shuffled in the stiff wooden seat at the local dango shop. Once he had caught wind of the rosette's love for the sweet, Kabuto had insisted that they met up weekly at the little café. Plastering the best smile she could, she greeted the silver haired man. "Kabuto-san! It's nice to see you again."

"As to you, Sakura-chan. How was your third week of school?" Kabuto asked, pouring himself a cup of tea whilst refilling hers. Sakura thought back to just a week prior, when her childhood friends admitted to watching her performance.

"Pretty good, some of the sensei's relaxed a bit now that Lady Tsunade isn't patrolling the halls anymore," Sakura ate the pink and foremost ball of dango, relishing the feeling of the chewy sweetness.

"Ah, yes. Many are like that," Kabuto took a sip of his tea, giving her a smile. Mentally recoiling, Sakura decided she didn't like her upperclassman. But when she graduated, it would be crucial to have a decent reputation once entering a new school, and being rude to something a few years older to her didn't seem like the way to go. She inwardly cringed.

How she wished to be back in her bed, cuddled into the much too many pillows that she owned, watching a movie, stuffing her face with chocolate and buttered popcorn. Biting her lip, she tuned into what Kabuto was saying. "Sakura, you're really a nice person. Not that many people like to hang out with me, they think I'm weird."

Peeling the flash of grimace off of her face, Sakura gave him her most pitiful look. "I don't understand why! It's very relaxing being around you," She easily responded, forcing her eyes to crinkle into a smile.

A text note rang from her phone, and Sakura peeked a look to it. It was Temari, who wanted her to make her version of an Olive Garden imitation pasta and breadsticks. Stealing this as an excuse, Sakura abruptly stood. "Hey, there's an emergency at home. I need to go."

And with that, Sakura bid her (short) goodbyes and left. Catching the bus that usually swung by just a bit after lunch time ended, she sat down. It was just a quick ride, for the apartment that she and her siblings shared was smack in the middle of most relevant places in Konoha.

Rolling her eyes at the sight of the kitchen, she saw a sheepish Kankuro, as Temari whacked her hand over the back of his head, exasperated. Raising a palm to her forehead, Sakura took notice of the _ten_ too many jars of pasta sauce, and the mess of flour on the countertops. Where Gaara was, she mused, was most likely as far away from the two idiots as he could manage in the medium sized apartment.

Muttering incoherent curses, she shoved Temari and Kankuro out of the kitchen and went straight to work.

><><

It was late, now. Two hours prior to midnight, in fact. And yet, Ino found herself sitting next to her father, her childhood friends' parents surrounding her. They were all settled into a circular table, with papers scattered across the top of it, all in either neat script, or barely legible chicken scratch.

The blonde huffed to herself. However much she despised being at this table, she softened. It was all to protect Sakura. She rolled her eyes and smirked. Of course that bubblegum princess would need protection, and from _her_ of all people. She took notice of who exactly sat before her.

Fugaku and Mikoto; it was rather odd to see the Uchiha mother at a meeting such as this, but Ino knew that she would refuse and demand to be present once she found that it was her precious Sakura-chan in danger, as well as Kushina.

Minato held his wife's hand lovingly, whispering into her ear. His yellow hair shadowed his face as he leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. Although still restless, Kushina relaxed. He was smart, Minato was. Calming down his wife before she broke down the entire office, making Mikoto join her. 

Shikaku and Chōza were heatedly discussing things with her father, who had turned away from her. There were many questioning looks being thrown her way, especially from Hiashi Hyuuga. "Yamanaka-san, what, pray tell, is your daughter doing here?"

"She figured it out," Inoichi responded, receiving simple nods in return. They knew their children would eventually figure everything out, and many of them had their money on Yamanaka Ino and Nara Shikamaru. 

"Actually," Shikaku began. "Shikamaru found out as well. However, he fell asleep before I could drag him- excuse me, take him with me. I'll bring him along the next early meeting."

Ino found her smirk widening at the mention of her male best friend. Maybe she was a bit upset for not being told this earlier, since she would've talked it out with the boy, but either way, it was a relief that she would actually have someone to confide in. Someone who shared the same burden as her.

Shivering at the early October weather, she desperately willed for the heaters to turn on again, which she had discovered, only turned on every other hour. So much time had passed, she mused, since she had, well, _anything._ Shopping, fun, Sakura. Her head was filled to the brim of the emergency going on, and she couldn't focus on much other than it.

And thus, the meeting began. Well, not really, since there were people missing, Ino noted, from the two empty chair at the corner of the table. The adults spoke in hushed whispers, keeping as silent as they could in the echoic room. Ino went in a daze, only catching bits and pieces. She already knew what was happening, and they were just catching up on minor details. It had been two weeks since she found out, after all.

A little bit of Orochimaru, a small piece of Sakura's parents, who wouldn't be participating in the meetings, for everyone worried for the trackers placed on them. _Finally_ , Ino thought as a curt knock rammed onto the door as it opened.

Wait. Was that Haku, the interviewer? What was he doing here, it's a top secret meeting for crying out loud! And was that Lady Tsunade, the freaking _principle_ of their school? Surely her father wouldn't let such people, no matter how esteemed they are, be here, Ino's eyebrows furrowed, creating a crease between them.

Haku began spilling the information. Patiently, yet a sense of urgency rang beneath his brows.

 _"_ Gatō is a part of the black market, where he deals with prostitution. Despite the fact that he is against this, when offered so much money, Zabuza-san could only agree, taking me, his son-like figure with him. Knowing that I would refuse, Zabuza told me little of what was happening.

Even if he is well known in the black market industry, Gatō's identity is hidden very well in the actual world, and few know of him and what he does. Although selling popular women isn't exactly his forte, since there'd be more searching, he knows that Sakura's body would get him lots of money."

A commotion rose from the listeners.

"So that damned fool wants to take _my_ Sakura-chan to sell her as a prostitute? At what, a _brothel_?!" Mikoto shrieked, eyes narrowing. No, Haku had told them. Gatō wanted to take her for his personal pleasure, and then whore her off. This only infuriated the woman more, as her grip on her husband's hand tightened. Fugaku winced, nodding for Haku to continue.

"With this information in mind, I decided that I to take action. I'm planning on telling Konoha 10. And yes, they would normally be the last people that you would tell because of their past, but this will work perfectly. After hearing Sakura's struggles with her past friends, I believe that this would be the perfect time to make up." 

Tsunade arched an eyebrow. "No offense, but why don't you just tell Sakura, so she can be on the lookout?" Haku released a sigh.

"As I was saying, due to their emotional side, they've always had a soft spot for Sakura. And so, they'll cave and finally understand. Telling Sakura, or the three friends always surrounding her would be too obvious, for he shouldn't be talking to them unless in a business scenery. It would ruin Sakura's reputation as a singer, making everyone think that she used underhand actions to win."

Murmurs of agreement crossed the room as Tsunade's brow climbed impossibly further up her face.

"And how, tell me, are a few fourteen year old's going to save my precious daughter?" At her question, Hiashi and Fugaku's faces twisted. Resting a hand on Fugaku's shoulder, Mikoto nodded at him.

"The Uchiha Police Force, and the Hyuuga clan," She tilted her head towards Hiashi. "We are both well conversed in fighting and training. Since the kids often meet up at my place, we can secretly set up a new training field in the yard." _I'll personally train them,_ Mikoto said silently, her lips pulling at the corner.

"Ino, Haku. You'll be in charge of telling them. Do _not_ reveal this secret, or make it obvious to her or her friends." Inoichi's voice was stern, unlike the time where he told Ino what was happening, with an amused yet focused voice.

Ino turned to look at Haku. The two shared the same determined glint in their eyes as they inclined their heads at each other. _Time to get down to business._ Whipping out her phone, Ino texted her group chat.

It was only eleven at night, the boys would most likely be gaming with each other, bar Shikamaru for sleeping. For the girls, well, they'd be doing their own thing. Having a spa day, since it was Friday night, watching tv shows, eating chocolate- damn it, why'd it have to be _her_ to figure things out?

_Ino: Tomorrow at Sasuke's._

_Sasuke: my parents are home_

_Ino: That's the whole point, dumba_

_Neji: When?_

_Ino: ASAP_

_Naruto: Well I'm there right now :]_

_Ino: 9 am_

_Shikamaru: that early?_

_Ino: You know damn well what this is about!!_

_Shikamaru: 8 am._

Ino let out a scoff. Leave it to the pineapple headed man to complain about it being too early, and then suggest an earlier time. She sighed. At least he understood the weight of importance this held. Well, of course he would! Rolling her eyes, she knew that she should have more faith in her friend, but seeing his regular antics made her forget.

_Naruto: Wha-_

_Naruto: What're you talking about??? Tell meee :'(_

_Tenten: Baka! There's a reason why we're meeting early tmr_

_Choji: It's important enough for Shikamaru to wake up before 8 in the morning too_

Shikamaru sneezed. Curse them, he thought, sneering. He could wake up early if he wanted to!


	12. Chapter 12

"Ino, it's _way_ too early for this," Choji muttered, crawling onto the sofa. Neji let out a snort of agreement before not so politely shaking Naruto awake. The blonde boy choked on his saliva, shooting a small drop of it onto Shikamaru's shoulder. "You're in a weird mood today, 'Maru," Naruto noted. "Tired?"

With a shake of his head, Shikamaru retied his ponytail, mentally slapping himself for not buying new hair ties when he had the chance. He looped the brown band around his thick locks not three times, but _four._ Far too many, in his opinion.

In the middle of the living room sat a tray of steaming fresh tea, along with an abundance of sugar packets and a jar of honey. "Shisui must be over!" Ino exclaimed, ladling spoonful after spoonful of honey into her mug.

"Yeah, I heard he just got back from the military a week ago," Shino inputted, gently pressing his black glasses up his nose. After grabbing her own cup of tea, Hinata joined the others in a circle, some on the ground and some sitting on the luxurious couches and reclining chairs. Her lilac eyes narrowed with worry.

"Ino-chan," She began. "You and Shikamaru wanted to talk, but why so early?"

"Look, this is going to be a lot to explain." Shikamaru sighed. "Just.. listen with an open mind," He weakly smiled. With a flurry of nods in agreement, Ino began her story.

"Orochimaru- _sensei_ and Kizashi-san made a terrible deal. And now, Sakura's parents are in major debt," Ino bit out, reluctantly letting the words out. Naruto opened his mouth to make a comment. Placing a hand on his shoulder, Sasuke nodded at her. "Thanks, Sasuke. Continuing, Orochimaru wants the two of them to pay him back, but it's too much, even with their company."

Kiba's eyes widened. He let out a low whistle of disapproval. "So now what?"

"Since Mebuki-san and Kizashi-san can't pay their debt, Orochimaru wants _Sakura."_ An outburst of yelling came, and all Ino and Shikamaru could do was nod in sympathy.

"Okay. Orochimaru wants Sakura. That's why he moved to the States a year after her. But why didn't you tell us?" Choji sat up from his laid back position, his left eyebrow naturally cocking up. Ino almost smiled at the familiarity of it. He never noticed it, but his brow would always shoot up when he was confused.

"Well, we really weren't supposed to know. Her parents originally moved there to get Orochimaru away from Sakura. But when they found out she would be moving there too, they panicked and came back. Hence why they arrived a day after she left. Orochimaru followed Sakura anyway," Ino's hand unconsciously ran through her hair, loosening the usually tight ponytail that sat on top of her head.

"Why isn't Sakura here, listening to this, then?" Neji frowned. Shikamaru let out a sigh, collapsing onto the cold, hardwood floor. "Well, it starts with Gatō..."

><><

Sakura bowed her head towards the swarm of reporters. She let out a meek yet proud smile, adjusting the sleeve of her bright blue romper, the small yellow flowers rippling against the fabric. 

Backstage, she eagerly pulled out the matching yellow hair tie that banded her almost waist length hair of pink tresses at the top of her head. Sakura massaged her sore scalp, mentally groaning at the ache and discomfort.

She placed her fancy black sunglasses at the top of her head, letting her chin length baby hairs frame her face. Lugging the bag onto her arm, she let it comfortably rest at her waist. 

"Sakura!" The powerful thunk of a cane made its way through her personal dressing room. Her eyes widened, _did she not lock the door behind her?_

"Ah, Gatō-san," She easily greeted the shortest of the three judges, bowing respectfully. Making himself at home, Gatō slouched against the back of the red couch in the middle of the small room. He waved her over, pouring out two glasses of tea.

Not being able to help the awkward smile resting on her face, Sakura minutely relaxed onto the matching red single seater armchair across from him. She accepted the tea with grace, nodding her thanks. "If I may," Sakura started, "Why are you here?"

The elderly man shifted in front of her, balancing his overly honey sweetened tea in one hand, and fixing his glasses with the other. "As you know, after this round, there are only three contestants left!" He flashed a bright smile at her.

"The other judges and I have split up to congratulate the three of you youngsters, Uchiha Shisui, Hirai Konan, and you, Haruno Sakura. We'd also like to mention that us judges will be picking out your next songs." Gatō paused, taking a hit from his e-cigarette, the rather putrid scent of blueberries scattering around the room.

Sakura froze. Damn it, she had the perfect song planned out, too! 

"If I were to make a wild guess," Gatō motioned for her to continue. "Is it because there are three people to choose from, and not two?" She asked, adjusting her pack, the leather uncomfortably digging into her waist.

His smile thickened. Sakura instantly looked away from his rotting teeth that were stained with nicotine. "Not only are you beautiful and talented at singing, Sakura, but you're also smart! Your parents are lucky to have such a wonderful, pretty daughter such as you!" 

Sakura's timid smile didn't reach her eyes. Actually, it hadn't even met her twin dimples at the corners of her mouths. "What song will I be singing?"

"Stone Cold by Demi Lovato. A few of our _lovely-_ " Sakura cringed at the intimate way he said it. "-staff made a translation to Japanese, but you may also use the given lyrics in English." Gatō wiped the corner of his mouth with his sleeve before standing. 

She couldn't see it, but she instantly knew his dark eyes were scanning the room as he collected his belongings. Following her gaze, she found it settled onto the cream colored bra she wore before changing into her romper for the show, which already had a bra in it. It was strewn across her makeup counter, next to a few miscellaneous hair products. 

"Well, Gatō-san, I'll be leaving now. Thank you for stopping by and congratulating me!" Sakura subtly rushed out the door, making sure not to shut it behind her as she became a flurry of pink, blue, and yellow bowing to her fellow competitors.

"Sakura-chan! There you are!" A cheerful shout rang across the hallway as Sakura's white sneakers padded through. Her head lifted out of its concentration and her mouth curved up to match the smile being shot at her. "Shisui!" She called back, waving her palm in the air.

It was a rather odd pair. The bubbly Uchiha who pranced about yelling meaningless things and the pink haired Haruno, who was seen as a more aloof person than most. Of course, those were just facades. Whenever they hung out outside of performances and practices, it was almost the opposite.

From thoughtful conversations to playful teasing, the two of them made one of the goofiest duos the world could've ever seen. Shisui jogged over, pulling a distressed amber eyed Konan along by his side. They all exchanged contact numbers, because even if they were all competing against one another, it wasn't like they wouldn't be close afterwards.

Once promising Konan that they'd make plans to meet up with each other after the show ended, Sakura was finally let out of the building. Unluckily for her, Kankuro had karate lessons, which he claimed were to protect Temari and Sakura- a blatant lie, by the way. Sakura figured that he just wanted to build some muscle on his flimsy arms that could hardly carry some of their moving boxes while the rest of them did.

She quickly climbed into a bus that went towards her apartment complex. There was little traffic at that time of day, since there were still around two hours or so before the majority of those working got off. The ride was short and smooth. The silent hum of the engine lulled Sakura to peacefulness as she peered out the window.

The blue and white bus slowed to a stop. Nodding her thanks to the bus driver, she walked out. It was slightly disappointing to find out that none of the buses in the city would take her closer to her apartment, but a ten minute walk seemed perfect to Sakura.

She broke into a brisk jog, a habit that she had earned from seventh grade when she played soccer. Temari would make sure that the two of them were still in shape, forcing them to run around until they were about to pass out from exhaustion or laughter, whichever came first.

It was hitting early November right about now, and Thanksgiving was right around the corner. Sakura had thought about visiting her parents, but spending time with her surrogate siblings and their own parents sounded much more appealing to her. 

Stepping through the double doors of the entrance, a rush of warm air was directed to her face. Sakura's nose scrunched in delight and annoyance. She flattened the baby hairs that had flown up. Gaara was leaning over the front desk in a tight conversation with the receptionist, who looked perplexed.

Walking up behind the red head, she made her footsteps noticeable so she wouldn't scare the living hell out of them. "Gaara, what're you doing?" She cheerfully called, taking her sunglasses off and tucking it into the front of her romper, which wasn't exactly on her side at that moment. It drooped down her chest, revealing more than she would've liked. Her eye twitched as she instead folded them into her pack.

His eyes landed on her, scanning her fully before hardening. "There was a _bodyguard_ in front of our apartment. Like, what the fuck?" Gaara almost never cursed. In fact, the last time he had cursed was the time he broke his leg because a car had hit him. It was only a week left until they went back to the States, and having him injured only pushed it back.

Sakura let out a gasp. His lower lip was busted cleanly, and his cheek was swelling. His right eye was slightly puffy and was rimmed an ugly red, enhancing the stress lines on his face. "And you're telling me, that so called bodyguard punched you? In our apartment?"

He gave her a curt nod before turned back to the receptionist, who know understood the full story. She straightened, wiping the look of shock clean off of her face. _"_ I shall get the footage for you now, sir." _She wasn't getting paid enough for this._

><><

Mikoto Uchiha stood furiously calm over the group of teens. Her long and luscious locks of hair were out of sight, and instead, swept smoothly into a tight bun at the nape of the neck. The discreet gray armor on her body let out a rustle as she positioned herself in front of a training dummy.

"When you're hitting someone, either aim for their gut or their throat. It knocks the air out of them, allowing you to make the next move quickly. Like this-!" Her fist shot out, punching the nude dummy in the middle of the throat. The realistic body lurched over and pitched backwards, flying three feet before laying in front of Hinata, who looked fierce.

She and Neji were used to this, especially with her father's expectations of every Hyuuga having basic defense skills. Although she had no reason to ever use them, and always lacked in the skill, Hinata knew that this was the one thing she could do. None of that shy fangirl façade, she had thought. She would fight for her friend.

On the other hand, Tenten stood reluctantly. Obviously she was well-versed in karate, she just didn't know how to go about the situation. It was difficult for her, since she had spent a good eight years of her life _hating_ Sakura, and now to find out that she was the most innocent person among them?

Kiba looked at his best friend. He knew exactly what she was going through. Although she was confused now, it was mainly guilt running through the both of their veins. The last times he had actually talked to her were to make fun of her, not knowing that it would later be at his expense.

"Always block. If you can get a hit in, don't get hit in return. _Block. Punch. Kick._ " Mikoto's stern voice echoed through the Uchiha's backyard suddenly turned training field. "Try it."

The teens looked at each other before lunging towards their own training dummy.


End file.
